US lawmakers ask Rubio for answers on Chinese fighters in Ukraine

By Michael Martina

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. lawmakers have asked the State Department to brief them about Russia's use of Chinese fighters in its war in Ukraine, saying in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday that Moscow could only employ Chinese mercenaries with Beijing's "tacit approval."

Ukraine said earlier this month that its forces had captured two Chinese men in eastern Ukraine and that at least 155 Chinese nationals were fighting on the Russian side.

U.S. officials have confirmed the intelligence to Reuters, but described the men as mercenaries who do not appear to have a direct link to China's government.

The letter, sent by the House of Representatives' select committee on China, reflects a growing desire among China hawks in Congress to see the Trump administration pressure China over its alignment with Russia.

The Republican chair of the committee John Moolenaar and its top Democratic Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi said the presence of Chinese fighters in Ukraine showed those deepening ties.

"Given the Chinese Communist Party's broad control in Chinese society, it is clear that Russia's recruitment campaign of PRC (People's Republic of China) nationals could not exist without at least the tacit approval of the Party," the lawmakers told Rubio in the April 30 letter seen by Reuters.

They asked the State Department to outline for Congress whether the U.S. has confronted Beijing about the developments and what actions it was pursuing to address it.

China, which has declared a "no-limits" partnership with Russia, has condemned "irresponsible remarks" about its nationals fighting in Russia's war in Ukraine. Beijing has tried to position itself as an actor in attempts to negotiate an end to the war, though it has refrained from criticizing Moscow's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The State Department has called the reports of Chinese men fighting in Moscow's war "disturbing."

In a separate statement to Reuters, Krishnamoorthi said the Trump Administration "must demand that the PRC immediately remove its citizens from the battlefield in Ukraine and take action to hold Beijing accountable for its broader military and dual-use support" for the war.

Moolenaar said China was "not a neutral actor" in the war.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said Russia was recruiting Chinese nationals via social media to join its armed forces and that Beijing officials were aware of that.

China has for years provided Moscow with material support for its war effort, primarily in the shipment of dual-use products – components needed to maintain weapons such as drones and tanks. It has also supplied Russia with lethal drones to use on the battlefield.

(Reporting by Michael Martina; Editing by Don Durfee, Alexandra Hudson)