Intelligence report accuses China of acting as sanctions backdoor for Russia

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China has acted as a backdoor for Russia to conduct business and obtain much-needed technology to continue its invasion in Ukraine, thereby bypassing Western sanctions, according to a new intelligence report.  

"Of course, Xi Jinping is helping out his dear friend Vladimir Putin," Rebekah Koffler, president of Doctrine & Strategy Consulting and a former Defense Intelligence Agency officer, told Fox News Digital.

"Beijing is highly motivated to keep the Russia-Ukraine war going because two of China’s top geopolitical adversaries — Russia and the United States — are depleting their respective combat arsenals in a proxy war, as China is readying to invade Taiwan," she explained. 

"It’s a no-brainer. China only benefits from bleeding out both Russia and the U.S.," Koffler stressed. 

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Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands after jointly signing a Joint Statement of the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation on Deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership of Coordination for the New Era and a Joint Statement of the President of the People's Republic of China and the President of the Russian Federation on Pre-2030 Development Plan on Priorities in China-Russia Economic Cooperation in Moscow on March 21, 2023. (Xie Huanchi/Xinhua via Getty Images)

The eight-page report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence on "Support Provided by the People’s Republic of China to Russia" found that Beijing has "become an even more critical economic partner for Russia" since the invasion started. 

Most notably, the report claims that "Beijing has also significantly increased the use of its currency … and its financial infrastructure in commercial interactions with Russia," which has allowed Russian entities to conduct business as usual without fear of Western interference. 

China has significantly benefited from reduced oil prices, with Russian crude capped since December due to a G7 price cap. According to the report, Russian imports from Beijing increased 13% in 2022, and exports increased 43%.

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Firefighters work to extinguish a fire after a Russian attack at an apartment buildings area in the town of Uman, 125 miles south of Kiev, Ukraine, on April 28, 2023. (National Police of Ukraine via AP)

China has also provided Russia with dual-use technology, with customs records showing state-owned defense companies shipping navigation equipment, jamming technology and fighter jet parts to Russian companies. Russia has even obtained processor chips through "small traders in Hong Kong and mainland PRC." 

The report cites foreign press as the main source for information on China’s chip shipments and trade with Russia. 

Gen. Jack Keane, Fox News senior strategic analyst and former U.S. Army vice chief of staff, told "Fox & Friends" on Friday that President Xi "had a choice to make." 

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Three rockets launched against Ukraine from Russia's Belgorod region are seen in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on March 9, 2023. (AP/Vadim Belikov)

"Putin is going to make a trip to China in October — that’ll be the third time they’ve seen each other since the war began," Keane said. "Now, what China has done is literally doubled down on buying Russia’s oil and gas and certainly helping Russia rather significantly economically."

Keane, who is also the chairman of The Institute for the Study of War, noted that China is avoiding direct trouble by supplying parts and technology rather than lethal weapons, claiming Beijing even supplied commercial drones to Russia, which "doesn’t take much" to make military-grade. 

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"I don’t think there's much interest and political will in the administration to close the loophole that you identified here on Fox dealing with dual technology," Keane speculated. "I don't think the Europeans will do sanctions against China over that."

"I don't think this administration will as well," he added. "I think this loophole will continue to be frank about it," he said.