Chinese firm Quzhou Nova reportedly imported at least $7.4 million worth of copper alloy ingots from the Debaltsevsky Plant of Metallurgical Engineering, situated in a Russian-annexed region of Ukraine subject to Western sanctions. According to Reuters, the news agency reviewed Russian customs data, which provides some of the first evidence of Chinese trade with Russian-controlled Ukrainian regions since the war began on February 24, 2022.
While China has not imposed trade restrictions with Russia, the United States has threatened global companies with blacklisting if they violate U.S. sanctions, and cautioned Beijing against supplying Moscow with goods banned by U.S. export rules. The customs data revealed that Quzhou Nova purchased at least 3,220 tons of copper alloy ingots valued at $7.4 million from the Debaltsevsky Plant between October 8, 2022, and March 24, 2023.
However, Quzhou Nova, a trading and manufacturing company based in Zhejiang province, denied any import or export business related to the trade of copper alloy ingots. When Reuters presented the customs data to the company, it questioned the document's legitimacy, as it lacked stamps and signatures, and recommended contacting customs for clarification.
Between October and February, China imported copper and copper alloys worth $852 million from Russia, according to public customs statistics. An anonymous source at the Debaltsevsky plant confirmed the presence of a non-ferrous metallurgy workshop on-site but declined to comment on the copper alloy shipments to China, citing "trade secret."
The Russian Federal Customs Service, the Chinese customs service, and the Kremlin all maintained that the information on companies is confidential and undisclosed. Ukraine, Western allies, and the majority of the U.N. General Assembly have condemned Russia's annexation of the four regions as illegal.
U.S. sanctions, imposed on February 21, 2022, prohibit U.S. imports from or exports to the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, while the European Union announced similar measures two days later. Although Chinese companies can legally trade with firms in Russian-controlled Ukrainian regions, they risk being added to Western blacklists.
The U.S. State Department expressed concern over China's alignment with the Kremlin, stating, "We have warned the PRC (People's Republic of China) that assistance to Russia's war effort would have serious consequences." The European Commission, China's Ministry of Commerce, and the Ukrainian and Russian-appointed Donetsk People's Republic administrations did not respond to Reuters' inquiries.
According to the customs data, the copper alloy shipments were transported via the port of Novorossiysk in southern Russia.
