China is restricting exports of high-precision equipment to Russia in a major blow for Vladimir Putin and his military-industrial complex. High-tech machine tools are vital in helping Russia produce weapons for its war in Ukraine.
Beijing has reportedly tightened its export restrictions, making it virtually impossible for Russia to obtain Chinese machine tools with a precision of 3-4 microns. The bad news was confirmed by Ildar Nuriyev, owner of Tatpromstan, at the TEMP forum on metalworking and additive technologies. “China has restricted the supply of high-tech equipment, although this is rarely mentioned,” he said.
“While it used to be possible to obtain machine tools with an accuracy of 3-4 microns, it’s no longer possible. A special export license is required.”
He added that the restrictions were a sign of Beijing’s reluctance to develop partnerships with Russian companies.
It comes as new data shows a general decline in trade between China and Russia, in a further blow to the Kremlin.
China has become one of Russia’s most important economic and political partners since the imposition of Western sanctions following Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Last year, the total value of imports and exports between the two countries amounted to US$244.8 billion.
China’s President has repeatedly emphasised the close relationship between the two nations, saying they “have consistently moved forward hand-in-hand along the correct path of non-alignment.”
Both leaders have also professed a “no limits” partnership on a number of occasions.
Despite these statements of eternal friendship and co-operation, data from China’s Customs agency shows a clear cooling off in trade.
Shipments of Chinese goods to the Russian market fell by 16.4% year-on-year in August. This is double the 8.6% decline seen in July.
Overall, trade turnover between the two countries fell by almost 9% in the first eight months of 2025, to 1.03 trillion yuan (approximately US$145 billion).
Russian exports to China fell by 8.8%, while Chinese imports to Russia fell by 8.2%.
Experts at the Gaidar Institute also pointed out that China has reduced its purchases of virtually all types of Russian raw materials, including oil.