Chinese soldiers captured by the Armed Forces of Ukraine: The Telegraph explained what Beijing can expect.

If it is confirmed that Chinese citizens captured by the Ukrainian Defense Forces are military personnel from China, sanctions should be imposed against Beijing. This was stated by Luke de Pulford, executive director of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), in a comment to The Telegraph, reports Glavkom.

Luke de Pulford emphasized that such involvement may indicate the existence of an 'authoritarian axis' which includes North Korea, China, and Russia. If the detainees are mercenaries, according to Pulford, it means that China tolerates citizens who effectively support Putin's criminal war on the battlefield, continuing a conflict that claims the lives of innocent people and undermines democratic alliances.

'If these were soldiers of the People's Liberation Army of China, then rapid and coordinated sanctions must be introduced,' he added.

Just last month, a video began circulating on social media, supposedly showing the presence of Chinese mercenaries within Russian troops in the city of Selidove in Donetsk region. The footage shows Eastern Asian-looking soldiers leaving graffiti with Chinese characters on the walls of a damaged building. Their equipment closely matches the uniforms that have been repeatedly noticed among Russian military personnel.

One of the soldiers was spotted wearing a patch that read 'BARS' - this is an abbreviation for the Russian combat army reserve. These formations are formally considered volunteer, but in fact, they sign contracts with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. Their legal status remains unclear, which allows them to avoid legal responsibility for participating in combat actions.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky published a video with a Chinese citizen captured by Ukrainian troops.

On April 8, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky published a video with one of the two Chinese citizens captured by Ukrainian soldiers. This, according to Zelensky, may indicate direct or indirect involvement of the PRC in the war against Ukraine. At the same Time, journalists note that the real situation may be somewhat less extensive - it likely concerns foreign mercenaries recruited into the ranks of Russian military groups.

Earlier, we reported that the operation to capture two Chinese citizens who fought with the Russian army in the Donetsk region was carried out by fighters of the 81st separate airborne Slobozhansk brigade of the Airborne Assault Forces, reports Glavkom citing the brigade's Facebook page.