China Urges Citizens to Avoid War Zones After Kyiv Captures Two Nationals

It Rejects Ukraine's Claim of 'Many More' Chinese Fighting Alongside Russian Forces

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BEIJING - China's foreign ministry on April 9 urged its citizens to avoid conflict zones and participating in wars after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said troops had captured two Chinese citizens fighting alongside Russian forces.

"The Chinese side is verifying relevant information with the Ukrainian side," spokesperson Lin Jian said.

"The Chinese government has always asked its citizens to stay away from areas of armed conflict (and) avoid involvement in armed conflicts in any form."

The Kremlin declined to comment on this matter on April 9.

Mr. Zelensky told reporters on April 8 that Ukrainian troops had captured two Chinese citizens fighting with Russian forces in the Donetsk region of Ukraine.

Moscow and Beijing have in recent years boasted of their "no limits" partnership and deepened political, military, and economic cooperation since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

"Our military captured two Chinese citizens who fought in the Russian army. This happened on the territory of Ukraine - in the Donetsk region," Mr. Zelensky said, in a post on social media.

"We have the documents of these prisoners, bank cards, and personal data," Mr. Zelensky said, in a post that included a video of one of the alleged Chinese prisoners.