Chinese defence companies are part of the network helping Russia sustain its war against Ukraine – a war “crucial” to European security, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at the Nato summit on Tuesday.
While Russia poses a long-term threat to Europe, it is not just Russia alone, Zelensky told the summit’s defence industry forum, held in The Hague.
Zelensky said that the continent was facing a “network of state and non-state actors” that are “assuring the course of aggression”.
“This network includes Russia, North Korea, the current regime in Iran, Chinese companies, and many, many schemes across the world that help produce weapons and carry out operations against our country, our people, and our Europe,” Zelensky said.
“Only together can we counter this and the best way to do it is to hit the core of this aggression hard and to break every link that connects Russia with its accomplices.”
The Ukrainian president urged Europe to increase its investment in Ukraine and joint weapons production, saying that the weapons would strengthen European defence and security systems, and that ensuring security was their “common course”.
