# Putin personally approved secret military training with China > Reuters revealed on July 1, 2026, based on two European officials and documents reviewed by its journalists, that the secret military training - Author: Maxime Marquette - Publisher: MadMax (https://mad-max.co) - Section: Profile - Published: 2026-07-05 - Canonical URL: https://mad-max.co/en/article/poutine-a-personnellement-valide-un-entrainement-militaire-secret-avec-la-chine ## Introduction: the revelation that confirms Europe's worst fears ### A classified document that speaks for itself **Reuters** revealed on **July 1, 2026**, based on two European officials and documents reviewed by its journalists, that the secret military training **China** provided to Russian forces last year had been personally approved at the highest level of Russian power. A classified Russian document explicitly references an internal decree issued by **Defense Minister Andrei Belousov** in **August 2025**, authorizing a delegation of Russian armed forces to travel to **China** to take part in exercises at **People's Liberation Army** facilities. This is not a simple technical exchange between two militaries. It is documented confirmation that **Vladimir Putin**, through his **Defense** minister, personally signed off on strategic military cooperation with **Beijing**, in the middle of a war of aggression against **Ukraine**. The signal sent to **Europe** and the Western world is unambiguous: the **Moscow**-**Beijing** axis is tightening, and it is tightening at the very top of the state. *This is exactly the kind of revelation that should shake Western chancelleries to their core. This is no longer an analyst's hypothesis or a think tank's speculation: it is a classified document, cited by name, confirming direct military cooperation between the two greatest authoritarian threats of our time.* ## Four generals, a pact sealed on July 2 ### Names, ranks, precise responsibilities **Reuters**' report does not settle for vague claims: it names the officers involved directly. **Russian Major General Rustam Khusainov** and **Chinese Senior Colonel Sun Dayun** were identified by two European officials as the signatories of an agreement dated **July 2**, serving as the legal basis for this training. Other documents mention the involvement of **Colonel General Rustam Muradov**, deputy commander-in-chief of Russian ground forces, as well as **Chinese Major General Li Jinsun**, head of the PLA's Academy of radiological, chemical, and biological defense, and **Russian Major General Vitaly Gerasimov**. The presence of officials at such a high rank, involved in training directly linked to the war in **Ukraine**, underscores the strategic importance **Moscow** and **Beijing** place on this military cooperation. This is not a low-level exchange organized by junior officers: it is a decision made and carried out at the very top of the military hierarchy of both countries. *When four generals of this caliber are directly named in a classified document, we can no longer speak of rumor or speculation. We are talking about a structural military fact, and the West must treat it with the seriousness it deserves.* ## Three weeks in Beijing, high-risk training ### Chemical, radiological, and biological warfare At the heart of this cooperation is a **three-week** training session, held in **November** at a military facility in **Beijing**, focused on radiological, chemical, and biological protection. **The** topics covered explicitly included "chemical reconnaissance," "radiological reconnaissance," and protecting ventilation systems against contamination — skills directly applicable to a high-intensity conventional or hybrid war setting. **Russian** soldiers were photographed receiving instruction from a Chinese trainer and observing a nuclear reactor model. A separate report on training conducted in **Nanjing** praised the quality of the equipment, the use of sophisticated simulators, and the high theoretical level of the Chinese instructors, while noting, not without irony, the Chinese military's lack of real combat experience. *Training this specific on chemical, radiological, and biological warfare is nothing like a harmless academic exercise. It is precisely the kind of expertise that worries hybrid-warfare experts most, given the escalation risks in Ukraine.* ## Two hundred Russian soldiers, already sent to the front ### A direct link to the war in Ukraine An earlier **Reuters** report, published the previous month, revealed that **China** had trained roughly **200 Russian troops** in November, and that some of them had since joined the front in **Ukraine**. This detail fundamentally changes the nature of the story: it is no longer an abstract military partnership between two authoritarian powers, but concrete, direct support for Russia's war effort against a sovereign European nation. **EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas** confirmed on **June 15** that **Brussels** had verified, through its own intelligence channels, that this training had indeed taken place. The EU is now assessing the implications of this confirmation and discussing additional measures to take in response. *Two hundred Russian soldiers trained by China, then sent to fight in Ukraine: that is tangible proof that Beijing's proclaimed neutrality in this conflict is nothing but a carefully maintained diplomatic fiction.* ## Beijing denies, but the facts speak ### A line of defense that no longer convinces anyone China's foreign ministry categorically rejected these accusations, stating that its position on the Ukrainian crisis has remained consistent and that "the allegations in question are entirely baseless." **Beijing** continues to present itself as a neutral mediator in the war between **Russia** and **Ukraine**, a façade that these revelations make harder to sustain by the day. On the Russian side, the **Kremlin** declined to comment on Reuters' initial report but complained of "false information" being published in the **West**. General **Andrei Kartapolov** went further, calling the report "pure nonsense" and claiming the Russian military had nothing to learn from **China** — a statement that flatly contradicts the very content of the documents cited by **Reuters**. *These denials follow a now-familiar script: categorically deny in the face of documented evidence, then hope the news cycle moves on. But classified documents naming specific generals do not disappear with a simple press release.* ## Europe forced to rethink its approach to China ### The economic weight of the Sino-European relationship The trade relationship between the **European** Union and **China** remains substantial, with hundreds of billions of euros in annual trade. **This** economic interdependence has historically complicated any firm political response from **Brussels** toward **Beijing**, a dilemma this revelation makes all the more acute. **Some member** states, more economically dependent on **China** than others, could resist a broad hardening of European policy, creating internal tensions within the **Union** itself over the best response to take. ### A third European official sounds the alarm A third official, based in **Brussels**, offered a particularly striking assessment to **Reuters**: the **European** Union must stop viewing **China** primarily through an economic lens and focus instead on its role as a "decisive enabler of Russia's war." **This** framing marks a potential break from decades of European diplomacy centered on trade interests with **Beijing**. The **European** Union has already imposed sanctions on Chinese companies accused of supporting Russia's war effort. **But** this revelation about the direct, personal involvement of Russia's **Defense** minister could accelerate a broader hardening of European policy toward **China**, going well beyond targeted economic sanctions. *It's about time Europe stopped treating China as merely a difficult trading partner. A country that actively trains the soldiers of an aggressor at war with a sovereign European state is no longer a partner: it is an avowed strategic adversary.* ## An alliance that goes far beyond diplomatic rhetoric ### Ukraine's stance on this revelation **Kyiv** watches every new piece of evidence of military cooperation between **Russia** and **China** with particular attention. **Ukrainian** authorities have repeatedly called on their Western partners to acknowledge **Beijing**'s role as an enabler in the continuation of the war, a message that now carries added weight thanks to this **Reuters** investigation. **For** **Ukraine**, every new revelation of this kind is one more argument for securing greater Western military support, against a Russian adversary that clearly benefits from structured international logistical and technical backing. ### From rhetoric of neutrality to concrete military acts **Since** the start of Russia's invasion of **Ukraine**, **Beijing** has consistently insisted on its proclaimed neutrality, while maintaining close economic and diplomatic ties with **Moscow**. **This** revelation about secret military training definitively shatters that narrative of neutrality: you do not train the soldiers of a country at war, in skills as sensitive as chemical and radiological warfare, while claiming to remain impartial in the very conflict it is waging. The sophistication of this cooperation — signed agreements, named generals, weeks-long specialized training — suggests a structured, lasting military relationship, not an isolated or improvised gesture. It is the mark of a strategic axis being built methodically, out of the spotlight, for months if not years. *The gap between rhetoric and reality has never been more glaring. Beijing can repeat as many times as it likes that it is neutral: the named generals, the signed agreements, and the 200 soldiers sent to the front tell an entirely different story.* ## The precedent of sanctions and the question of their effectiveness ### The role of the United States in the Western response **Washington** is also closely watching this revelation, in a context where the American administration is seeking to maintain coordinated pressure with its European allies on **Russia** and **China**. **Congress** could use these revelations to justify new legislative measures aimed at further sanctioning Chinese entities linked to Russia's war effort. **This** transatlantic coordination remains essential to ensuring a coherent response to an authoritarian axis that, for its part, appears to coordinate its actions with formidable efficiency. ### Measures already taken, but are they enough? The **European** Union has sanctioned several Chinese companies deemed complicit in supporting Russia's war effort, but these targeted measures now appear insufficient given the scale of military cooperation revealed by **Reuters**. **Sanctioning** private companies is not enough if the very top of China's military apparatus is directly involved in training soldiers bound for the Ukrainian front. The question now facing **Brussels**, **Washington**, and other Western capitals is one of proportionality. If **China** is actively training the armed forces of a country waging a war of aggression, targeted economic measures seem derisory next to the strategic scale of this direct military collaboration. *Sanctions against a handful of companies will never be enough to deter a military partnership approved at the very top of the state by Russia's own defense minister. The West must scale up the magnitude of its response, or accept watching this cooperation deepen without real opposition.* ## North Korea, another piece of the authoritarian puzzle ### A three-way axis taking clear shape **This** revelation about Sino-Russian military cooperation fits into a broader context already documented by numerous Western sources: the deployment of North Korean troops to support Russia's war effort, the supply of munitions by **Pyongyang**, and now the training of Russian soldiers by **China**. **These** three elements outline an increasingly coordinated authoritarian axis, whose shared goal remains challenging the rules-based international order the West has upheld since the end of World War II. **Iran** completes this picture with its supply of drones and military technology to **Russia**. **Four** authoritarian regimes — Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran — are today coordinating, to varying degrees, direct or indirect support for the war of aggression waged against Ukraine, a sovereign European country fighting for its very survival. *This is no longer a think-tank theory about a modern "axis of evil": it is a documented reality, fact after fact, revelation after revelation. The West must stop treating these four regimes as separate files and understand that they increasingly act as a coordinated bloc.* ## The limits of Western transparency against Russo-Chinese secrecy ### European intelligence put to the test One point deserves more attention than it usually gets: this revelation would never have come to light without the meticulous work of European intelligence services and **Reuters** investigative journalists, who had to cross-reference classified Russian documents with the testimony of European officials. This rigorous verification work shows just how much transparency about **Russia**'s and **China**'s military activities remains a constant battle, waged against state machinery accustomed to secrecy and disinformation. **Without** this independent verification capacity, **Beijing**'s and **Moscow**'s official version — one of Chinese neutrality and a self-sufficient Russian army — would have remained the dominant narrative. This underscores the critical importance of maintaining and strengthening Western intelligence capabilities against adversaries increasingly sophisticated in their concealment operations. *We can never say enough about the importance of the meticulous cross-referencing work done by journalists and intelligence services to uncover this kind of state secret. Without that work, we would still be speculating about a Sino-Russian cooperation that Beijing and Moscow brazenly deny.* ## What this revelation means for support to Ukraine ### Renewed urgency for Kyiv's allies **For** **Ukraine**, this confirmation of Sino-Russian military cooperation directly tied to the conflict cannot be ignored by its Western allies. If Russian soldiers trained by **China** in chemical and radiological warfare skills are now fighting on the Ukrainian front, this strengthens the urgency for the **West** to maintain, if not intensify, its military and financial support to **Kyiv** against an adversary that benefits from increasingly structured international backing. **This** revelation should also weigh on discussions within NATO and the **European** Union about collective defense capabilities against hybrid threats combining multiple authoritarian actors. **Ukraine** is no longer fighting Russia alone: it is fighting, indirectly, a coordinated support network involving several authoritarian regimes. *Every new piece of evidence of this Sino-Russian cooperation should strengthen, not weaken, Western determination to support Ukraine. Backing down now would mean yielding to a coordinated authoritarian axis, not just to Russia alone.* ## The gray areas that remain despite the revelation ### What Reuters could not fully confirm It is important to be honest about the limits of this revelation: while the documents cited by **Reuters** and the testimony of European officials are solid, several questions remain open. The exact scale of this military cooperation, its future frequency, and the total number of Russian soldiers trained beyond the **200** already identified remain unclear. **Reuters** cites precise sources and documents, but acknowledges relying on partial information, necessarily limited by the classified nature of the file. Likewise, the exact scope of measures the **European** Union might adopt in response remains to be determined. **Kaja Kallas** indicated that **Brussels** "is assessing the implications," a cautious phrasing that prejudges no concrete decisions to come. This story will likely continue to evolve in the weeks and months ahead, as more information emerges. *I would rather honestly admit the limits of what we know than speculate beyond documented facts. But even with these gray areas, the essential point stands: this military cooperation exists, it is approved at the very top, and it directly serves Russia's war effort.* ## The responsibility to call things by their name ### Rejecting diplomatic euphemism **Faced** with such a revelation, the temptation is strong, in certain Western diplomatic circles, to downplay the scale of this cooperation in order to preserve economic dialogue channels with **Beijing**. **This** temptation must be firmly resisted. Calling things by their name — direct military cooperation between China and Russia, approved by their highest-ranking defense officials, in service of a war of aggression against a sovereign European country — is a prerequisite for any coherent, effective Western response. History will judge harshly the Western democracies that chose to look away from this documented evidence out of sheer diplomatic caution or short-term economic interest. Clarity of language always precedes clarity of political action. *I refuse diplomatic euphemism in the face of facts this clearly established. This is not "technical cooperation" — it is direct military support for a war of aggression, and the West must have the courage to call it exactly that, without a filter.* ## The historical context of mutual distrust turned alliance ### A geopolitical shift with deep roots **International** relations analysts note that this Sino-Russian rapprochement did not begin only with the invasion of **Ukraine**, but has been accelerating gradually since the mid-2010s, as tensions between Moscow and Beijing and the West intensified. Converging interests against Western hegemony have gradually supplanted historical mistrust. This long-term geopolitical shift confirms that the military cooperation revealed by **Reuters** is not an isolated accident, but the logical culmination of a strategic trajectory set in motion more than a decade ago. ### Former rivals turned strategic partners It is worth remembering that the relationship between **Moscow** and **Beijing** has not always been so harmonious. **For** decades during the **Cold** War, **China** and the Soviet Union clashed ideologically and militarily, notably during the 1969 border conflict. This history of rivalry makes the current transformation of their relationship into active, documented military cooperation all the more significant. The accelerated rapprochement since the invasion of **Ukraine** in **2022** shows how quickly realpolitik can erase decades of mutual distrust once the strategic interests of two regimes converge against a perceived common adversary: the international order dominated by the **West**. *This historical transformation should remind us that no alliance between authoritarian regimes is set in stone by ideological affinity. It is dictated by the strategic calculation of the moment, which makes it all the more dangerous and unpredictable for the West.* ## Conclusion: a documented turning point in the authoritarian axis ### Lessons for Western defense doctrine **This** revelation forces a revision of Western military planning assumptions, which must now account for the possibility of broader Chinese technical and logistical support to Russia's war effort than previously assumed. **NATO** general staffs are likely reassessing, in light of this information, their escalation scenarios involving **Russia** and China simultaneously. **This** reality also strengthens the case for greater investment in Western collective defense capabilities, including protection against the chemical, biological, and radiological threats directly mentioned in the **Reuters** report. ### A fact that reshuffles the strategic deck **This** **Reuters** revelation, backed by classified documents and precise testimony from European officials, marks a turning point in Western understanding of the Sino-Russian relationship. This is no longer an analyst's hypothesis, but a documented fact: Russia's **Defense** minister personally approved secret military training with China, involving high-ranking generals and soldiers now deployed on the Ukrainian front. **Faced** with this reality, **Europe** and its Western allies must rethink their approach to **Beijing**, ceasing to artificially separate economic interests from geopolitical responsibility. China is no longer merely a complex trading partner: it is, in the very words of a European official cited by Reuters, a "decisive enabler" of Russia's war against Ukraine. ### The role of civil society and investigative journalism **Without** the tireless work of investigative journalists and the courage of anonymous sources willing to confirm sensitive information, this secret military cooperation would likely have remained hidden for much longer. **This** underscores, once again, the critical importance of free, independent investigative journalism in the face of authoritarian regimes accustomed to secrecy. Western civil society, through its media and civic organizations, plays an essential watchdog role that governments themselves cannot always fulfill alone, constrained as they are by diplomatic considerations. ### The urgency of a response that matches the facts The era of half-measures and symbolic sanctions appears to be over given the scale of this direct military cooperation. The **West** must now craft a coherent strategic response that fully acknowledges **Beijing**'s active role in supporting Russian aggression, rather than continuing to treat each revelation as an isolated incident unconnected to the ones before it. The future of **Ukraine**, the credibility of the rules-based international order, and the security of the entire European continent depend directly on the **West**'s ability to respond firmly to this increasingly open authoritarian alliance between **Moscow** and Beijing. *I close this profile convinced of one thing: history will remember this moment as the one when the West had, in black and white, documented proof of a military alliance between its two greatest strategic adversaries. What remains to be seen is whether we will have the courage to act on it.* **By Maxime Marquette, columnist** ## Columnist's transparency note ### Editorial stance I am not a journalist but a **columnist and analyst**. My expertise lies in observing and analysing the geopolitical, economic and strategic dynamics that shape our world. My work is to take political strategies apart, to understand global economic movements, to put the decisions of international actors in context and to offer analytical perspectives on the changes that are redefining our societies. I do not claim the cold objectivity of traditional journalism, which stops at reporting facts. **I claim analytical clarity**, rigorous interpretation and a deep understanding of the complex issues that concern us all. My role is to give meaning to the facts, to place them in their historical and strategic context, and to offer a critical reading of events. ### Method and sources This text keeps the basic distinction between **verified facts and interpretive analysis**. The rule never changes: a factual claim is published only when a verifiable source supports it, and the sources this article actually used are listed under **Sources**, never here. **Primary source families** used by the publication, when the story has them: official statements from governments and international institutions, public statements by political leaders, reports from intergovernmental organisations, dispatches from recognised international news agencies. **Secondary source families**: specialised publications, internationally recognised news media, analyses from established research institutions, reports from industry organisations. When an article cites statistical, economic or geopolitical data, it comes from the institutions that produce it (intergovernmental organisations, central banks, national statistics offices), and the exact institution is named under **Sources**. ### Nature of the analysis The analyses, interpretations and perspectives in the analytical sections of this article are a **critical, contextual synthesis** based on the information available, the trends observed and the expert comments cited in the sources consulted. My role is to interpret these facts, to set them in the context of today's geopolitical and economic dynamics, and to give them a coherent meaning within the larger story of the changes shaping our time. These analyses reflect expertise built through continuous observation of international affairs and an understanding of the strategic mechanisms that drive global actors. This article describes a documented state of affairs on its publication date, not a prediction: later developments may shift its outlook. No update is promised in advance; when an article is corrected or completed, the change is dated in the text. ## Sources ### Primary sources - Reuters — Russia approved secret military training with China at the highest level, July 1, 2026 - The Guardian — Tensions between China and Japan, July 2, 2026 ### Secondary sources - Foreign Policy — Analysis of Sino-Russian cooperation - Military Times — Coverage of defense issues in Europe and Asia - 19FortyFive — Defense analysis on the China-Russia axis - The Guardian International — Coverage of global geopolitical tensions --- Source: Maxime Marquette, MadMax. When citing, name the author and link https://mad-max.co/en/article/poutine-a-personnellement-valide-un-entrainement-militaire-secret-avec-la-chine