"Axis of Autocracies": Who Is Helping Russia in Its War Against Ukraine

Western politicians openly discuss the amount of military aid to Ukraine in their parliaments and media. Russia, on the other hand, barely discloses information about which countries are helping it and how exactly they are assisting in waging war against Ukraine. At the same time, many military experts are certain that only thanks to its "allies" can Russia inflict unprecedentedly brutal strikes on Ukraine, which have recently been claiming the lives of an increasing number of civilians. Who is providing military aid to Russia and in what amounts- is detailed in DW’s report.

"Many people mistakenly believe that Russia is fighting Ukraine alone," says Austrian General Staff Colonel Markus Reisner. "Russia is waging this war with its allies."

These allies not only help Moscow continue to earn revenue from selling natural resources but also provide military assistance, supplying Russia either directly with ammunition and soldiers or with dual-use goods, which Russia uses to manufacture its own munitions.

In Western media, this alliance is increasingly being referred to as the Axis of Autocracies or the New Axis of Evil, sometimes simply shortened to CRINK—an acronym formed from the first letters of the countries informally involved: China, Russia, Iran, North Korea.

Is China Pro-Russian Neutral?

Western military experts consider the People's Republic of China one of Russia’s main enablers in its war against Ukraine. In early July, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the EU’s foreign affairs chief, Kaja Kallas, that China cannot allow Russia to lose the war against Ukraine.

"Beijing has never truly been neutral," said Sören Urbansky, a German historian and professor at Ruhr University in Bochum, in an interview with DW. "Scholars call it pro-Russian neutrality. But the fact that China has, for the first time, openly stated it cannot accept a Russian defeat marks a change in tone."

The EU’s special envoy for sanctions, David O'Sullivan, estimated that China is responsible for 80 percent of sanction evasion cases involving Russia. According to him, China continues to supply goods to Russia both directly and through intermediaries such as Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, and Turkey.

 

In a new report by the “China-Russia Monitoring Center”, which includes several Western think tanks, the authors write that dual-use goods from China are supporting the Kremlin's war machine - intended for both civilian and military purposes.

In the first half of 2025, China delivered such products to Russia worth $1.9 billion.

"Despite a decrease in exports (dual-use goods – Office.) by around seven percent compared to the previous year, China remained a key supplier for Moscow amid a decline in deliveries from other major partners," the study's authors wrote.

According to their data, China has reduced exports of several key high-tech products, including microprocessor units and equipment for transmitting voice, images, and data.

At the same time, exports of parts for surveillance cameras and drones increased fourfold, antenna parts and radar reflectors fivefold, printed circuit boards twofold, and optical targeting and observation devices fourfold, including sniper scopes, periscopes, and military-grade telescopes.

Another think tank, CEPA, reports that Chinese components play a key role in enabling Russian drone production.

North Korea sending soldiers and shells

“You might smile at the mention of 'North Korea',” says Markus Reisner, “but North Korea delivered 12 million artillery shells to Russia. That’s a huge number compared to what the West has supplied to Ukraine.”

The figure mentioned by Reisner is based on a July estimate from South Korea’s Ministry of Defense intelligence agency, as cited by Bloomberg. Earlier, in May, the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Group, which includes 11 UN member states, released their own estimates.

According to their data, North Korea sent over 11,000 soldiers to the war in Ukraine last year, and around 3,000 more in early 2025. In addition, the DPRK delivered to Russia rocket launchers, vehicles, tank destroyers and other types of heavy weaponry, as well as at least 100 ballistic missiles, the report states.

In an interview with Bloomberg, the head of Ukraine’s military intelligence (GUR), Kyrylo Budanov, said that North Korea supplies up to 40 percent of the ammunition Russia needs to sustain its war effort.

According to South Korean intelligence, from July–August of this year, DPRK intends to send even more soldiers to Russia.

Shahed, who became “Geran”

At the beginning of the war, Russia relied on drones from Iran - primarily the Shahed-136. The Center for Advanced Defense Studies (C4ADS) in Washington estimated that since the start of the war, Russia has launched around 8,000 Iranian drones at military and civilian targets in Ukraine.

Thanks to the purchase of technology from Iran, Russia can now produce Geran-2 and Geran-3 drones domestically, in the special economic zone of Alabuga - these are in fact  improved versions of the Shahed drones.

“Russian drones now fly faster and at higher altitudes - beyond the reach of Ukrainian mobile air defense units,” write the authors of the C4ADS report.

Reuters, citing sources in Western security services, reported that Iran also plans to send Russia launchers for short-range ballistic missiles, the Fath-360. Russia may have received up to 400 such missiles from Tehran.

Missile Components from Belarus

“I fully believe that Belarus aim is not to be fully involved in this conflict, in the sense of sending hundreds of thousands of soldiers to the front,” says Markus Reisner. “I think Lukashenko even deserves some credit for this - he has acted like a cunning fox.”

However, according to BelPol, an association of former Belarusian security officials, Minsk is supplying Russia with missile components. They refer to a contract between the Belarusian “Precision Electromechanics Plant” and the Russian Scientific-Production Association “Splav” for the delivery of more than 184,000 mechanical parts for missile bodies.

According to BelPol, Russia ultimately uses these components to produce rockets for the Grad multiple rocket launcher systems.