How Russia Attracts Chinese Citizens to Fight in Ukraine?

In one of the advertisements published on the Chinese social media platform 'Weibo', men are seen leaving their daily jobs to go fight on the Russian front in Ukraine. This video, released in Russian with Chinese subtitles, ends with an inciting phrase: 'You are a man; be a man.' It promises a reward of $7,000 to $21,000 for signing a contract and a monthly salary of about $2,400. This clip alone has garnered hundreds of thousands of views and is just one of many advertisements circulating online in China aimed at recruiting for the war in Ukraine. These ads gained more attention after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on April 8 that his army had captured two Chinese mercenaries fighting alongside Russian forces. He also accused Russia of running a systematic campaign to attract Chinese citizens, stating that these two individuals are just examples of at least 155 Chinese people fighting in the Russian army. Although reports of Chinese presence on both sides of the front have been published since the beginning of Russia's large-scale invasion, Zelensky's recent statements have drawn more attention to how Russia is recruiting these forces. Zelensky's remarks follow previous reports about the presence of foreign mercenaries in Ukraine, including exclusive documents obtained by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty showing the actual scale of Russian casualties in this war. Among these data, the name of a Chinese man appears, who confirmed in messages to this media that he is a Chinese citizen and fought alongside Russian forces but refrained from providing further details. The most significant factor seems to be financial motivation. The advertisements published on Chinese social media emphasize earnings that are higher than the average monthly salary in many regions of China. In the comment sections of these ads, the most common questions are about payment amounts and then the level of language proficiency required. However, there is no indication that these forces are part of an official Chinese government program to send troops to the Russian front. Many of the volunteers have no military background. In one of the videos Zelensky published on April 9, one of these individuals admits that before going to Russia for training, he had no military experience and had never even held a weapon. Some others have stated that they joined the front to gain field experience. In an interview published last month on YouTube, Chinese journalist Chai Jing spoke with a Chinese citizen who fought on the front lines alongside Russian forces. This mercenary, who introduced himself by his code name, explained how and why he joined this war. He said he traveled to Russia on a tourist visa in late 2023 and then joined Russian forces. He spoke of his membership in a 'strike team' near the front lines in eastern Ukraine and released videos that appeared to show him in the city of Bakhmut during the bloody battles that led to the complete destruction of the city. He also talked about the difficulties he and other foreign forces experienced in Russian units, including language problems and racism. This fighter said he had previously been a member of the Chinese army, and money was one of his main motivations for joining the war, but experiencing war also motivated him. He now shares his memories of his time in the Ukraine war on Chinese social media. He stated: 'I realized I might be killed here one day, so I decided to share my experiences because the people of China have not tasted war for a long time.' China's response to the presence of Chinese mercenaries on the Russian front is noteworthy. China is Russia's closest partner, and Western officials say that Beijing has played a significant role in keeping the Russian economy afloat during the war. However, China has so far refrained from sending military aid to Russia, and its Foreign Ministry has advised its citizens to stay away from war zones, labeling reports of widespread Chinese presence on the front lines as 'completely baseless.' Zelensky has not directly stated that the Chinese government has green-lighted the presence of these mercenaries, but he has accused Beijing of turning a blind eye to the recruitment of its citizens by Russia. There are also indications that Chinese officials have not made effective efforts to prevent this trend. Despite heavy internet censorship in China and extensive monitoring and control over social media, many of these recruitment ads, some of which have been published for months, remain accessible and are being shared in China's online space.