China has become key supplier of critical components for "Shahed" drones to Russia, - Wall Street Journal
From July 2023 to February 2025, Russia has bought more than 3.3 million engines for drones from the Chinese company Shenzhen Kiosk Electronic for $83 million.
According to Censor.NET, this was reported by The Wall Street Journal, citing unpublished reports prepared for the US State Department and European governments.
Dual-use goods are used to manufacture drones
It is noted that Beijing does not supply weapons directly, but does not restrict the export of dual-use goods that can be used for military purposes.
Formally, the engines can be used in household appliances, such as washing machines, pumps or electric scooters.
However, their actual recipient was the Moscow-based company "Rustakt" LLC, registered on 22 February 2022. The company specialises in the production of FPV drones, and its revenue in 2023 exceeded 1 billion roubles, which is 12 times more than a year earlier.
"Rustact" acts not only as a manufacturer but also as a logistics centre for other Russian companies that assemble drones
In December 2024, the European Union imposed sanctions on "Rustakt" for assisting the Russian military, but the company continued to make purchases in China. From July 2023 to February 2025, the company purchased $294 million worth of goods, including more than $83 million worth of engines.
There are dozens of similar cases in the documents. All of them show that China has effectively become a key external supplier of critical components, such as engines and navigation systems, for Shahed-type drones, which Russia uses to attack Ukrainian cities.
