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Ukraine’s Security Service (SSU) counterintelligence arrested two Chinese nationals in Kyiv who attempted to illegally smuggle secret documents related to the Ukrainian RK-360MC “Neptune” missile system back to China.
According to the investigation, one of the spies is a 24-year-old former student of a Kyiv technical university, who remained in Kyiv after being expelled in 2023 due to academic failure.
The other suspect is his father, a permanent resident of China who occasionally visited Ukraine to personally coordinate his son’s espionage activities.
The former student sought to obtain technical documentation on the production of “Neptune” missiles and tried to recruit a Ukrainian connected to the development of advanced weapons for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
SSU counterintelligence uncovered the spy early in his activities and caught him “red-handed” during the transfer of classified documents. Subsequently, his father was also arrested as he intended to pass the secret information to Chinese intelligence services.
During searches, phones were seized from both suspects containing messages coordinating their espionage activities.
The suspects have been charged under Article 114, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine—espionage. They face up to 15 years imprisonment with confiscation of property.
The “Neptune” missile has played an active role in the Russia-Ukraine war. In April 2022, two “Neptune” missiles successfully sank the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, the cruiser “Moskva.” In March 2024, a “Neptune” missile struck the landing ship “Kostiantyn Olshansky,” which was based in Crimea.
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