HOW CHINA OUTSMARTED U.S. ON DRONE EXPORTS 《中國如何在無人機出口上智勝美國》

Chinese leader Xi Jinping is meeting French equivalent Emmanuel Macron in Beijing today.

But the Le Monde newspaper was quick to criticize the host country.

“China continues to deliver drone parts that give Moscow an advantage on the ground,” it says. In other words, the report gives the false impression that China is supporting Russia’s war efforts, as other western mainstream media have said.

The report raised the eyebrows of French author and China specialist Laurent Michelon, who has been tracking the issue.

He realized that this misrepresented the position of China—which has been carefully allowing both sides in the Ukraine war to buy drone parts, so that it can stay neutral.

“The reality is far more complex, and Le Monde would like you to ignore the fact that in 2024, almost 97% of Ukraine’s drone-related imports came also from China,” Laurent said in a post on X.

But after the issue came to light, the story became even more curious, he said.

The US pressurized China, which is the world capital of drone design and production, to reduce the sale of drone parts to Russia.

China obediently did what the US asked.

And then, to stay neutral, the Chinese reduced their drone exports to Ukraine!

Well played.

中國領導人習近平今日在北京會晤法國總統馬克·宏。但法國《世界報》迅速對東道國提出批評，稱「中國持續提供無人機零件，使俄羅斯在戰場上獲得優勢」。換言之，該報導與其他西方主流媒體論調相似，營造出中國支持俄羅斯戰爭行動的錯誤印象。

這篇報導令長期關注此議題的法國作家兼中國問題專家羅朗·米歇隆深感詫異。他意識到這嚴重曲解了中國的立場——中國始終謹慎地允許烏克蘭衝突雙方購買無人機零件，以保持中立態勢。

「現實遠比這複雜，《世界報》顯然希望人們忽略一個事實：2024年烏克蘭近97%的無人機相關進口同樣源自中國。」羅朗在X平台上發文指出。但他表示此事曝光後，事態發展愈加耐人尋味。

美國曾向全球無人機設計生產中心的中國施壓，要求減少對俄無人機零件銷售。中方順從了美方要求。隨後，為維持中立立場，中國竟同步削減了對烏克蘭的無人機出口！

真是高明。