China is developing attack drone for Russia that is analogous to Iran’s Shahed-136 - Bloomberg
Chinese and Russian companies are developing and testing an attack drone similar to the Iranian Shahed model used by Russia in its war against Ukraine.
According to Censor.NET, Bloomberg writes about this, citing European officials who are familiar with the issue.
It is noted that in 2023, Chinese and Russian companies agreed to cooperate to copy the Iranian Shahed drone.
They have begun developing and testing their version for delivery to Russia. At the same time, Chinese officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, note that these drones have not yet been used in Ukraine.
According to the newspaper, providing Russia with a Shahed drone would mean Beijing's deepening support for Moscow, despite warnings from the United States and its allies.
At the same time, US officials say that China has so far refrained from directly providing weapons and artillery to Russia.
One person with knowledge of the matter said that the US assesses that China is weighing whether to send fully built drones, but in the meantime is sending "kits that can be converted to attack drones".
"The U.S. has not yet concluded that China is sending lethal aid to Russia, the source said, acknowledging that other countries may have a different interpretation," the article said.
One concern is that China could produce a drone similar to the Shahed much faster than Iran or Russia, officials said.
Bloomberg notes that officials have not identified the type of drone being developed, but Chinese defence websites and several media outlets have reported that the country is developing a kamikaze strike drone called the Sunflower 200, which looks similar to Iran's Shahed-136 drone.
In April, Bloomberg News reported that China was providing Russia with military satellite imagery, microelectronics and tank machines, as well as a range of technologies used in or needed for weapons production.
