China has been secretly training Russian military personnel
According to Reuters, the exercises took place in late 2025 under a Russian-Chinese agreement signed on 2 July 2025 in Beijing by senior officials from both countries.
The document provided for the training of around 200 Russian military personnel at Chinese military facilities, notably in Beijing and Nanjing. The agreement also provided for the training of hundreds of Chinese military personnel in Russia. The exercises mainly focused on the use of drones, and also included electronic warfare, army aviation and armoured infantry operations.
Information about the visits was not to be reported in the media, and third parties were not to be informed of these activities. The Russian and Chinese defence ministries did not respond to Reuters’ requests for information regarding the details in the report.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Beijing “consistently maintains an objective and impartial stance” regarding the war in Ukraine and “is working to promote peace talks”.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry also called for “not to escalate confrontation and not to shift blame”.
What is known about the training
According to two intelligence services, Chinese military personnel have been travelling to Russia for training since at least 2024, but the training of Russian military personnel in China is a new development.
Sources speaking to Reuters noted that a significant proportion of the Russian military personnel who underwent training in China were instructors and were able to pass on the knowledge they had gained to other units.
One of the intelligence services reported that it had identified several Russian military personnel who had undergone training in China and subsequently participated in combat operations involving the use of drones in Crimea and the Zaporizhzhia region.
These are military personnel with ranks ranging from junior sergeant to lieutenant colonel. Reuters notes that it has been unable to independently confirm their subsequent involvement in the war against Ukraine.
Drone training and mining
Internal Russian military reports, which the agency has seen, describe several training courses for Russian military personnel in China.
One of these took place in December 2025 at a branch of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Ground Force Infantry Academy in Shijiazhuang. There, around 50 Russian military personnel underwent a general military training course involving the use of drones to guide 82mm mortars.
Another course focused on air defence and included the use of electronic warfare equipment, nets for intercepting drones and other anti-drone systems.
A further course in December 2025 took place at the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Military Aviation Centre in Yibin. Russian military personnel were trained in the use of FPV drones and flight simulators.
A separate training session in November 2025 took place at Nanjing University of Military Engineering. There, Russian military personnel studied explosives, mining, demining and the disposal of explosive devices.
The report also contained photographs of Russian military personnel in uniform during training sessions with Chinese instructors.
China and Russia announced an “unlimited” strategic partnership shortly before the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and have conducted joint military exercises since the war began.
