China reportedly asked Ukraine not to strike Vladivostok during senior official’s visit

China asked Ukraine to temporarily refrain from striking Vladivostok while Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang was visiting the Russian Far Eastern city for the Eastern Economic Forum, Kyodo News reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. Ukraine reportedly agreed to the request.

The reported request highlights Beijing’s concerns over the growing reach of Ukrainian drone operations deep inside Russian territory. Vladivostok is thousands of kilometres from Ukraine, but Kyiv demonstrated its ability to conduct long-range operations during its 2025 “Spider Web” campaign, which involved drones being smuggled deep into Russia.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had previously hinted that a major power had asked Kyiv to suspend strikes in the direction of Vladivostok for a specified period. He did not identify the country at the time, saying Ukraine was prepared to respect the request in the interests of diplomacy.

The request reportedly coincided with Ding’s participation in the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, where he met Russian President Vladimir Putin and discussed expanding Chinese-Russian cooperation in the Russian Far East.

According to the Kyodo report, Kyiv agreed to the temporary pause with the expectation that Beijing could potentially play a role in future efforts to end the war.

The episode also underscores the increasingly complicated position China occupies in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. While Beijing maintains close economic and strategic ties with Moscow, it has also sought to present itself as a potential actor capable of contributing to a negotiated settlement.

The reported intervention would mark a notable instance of China directly seeking to influence the operational scope of Ukrainian strikes, particularly as Kyiv continues expanding its ability to target Russian military and logistical infrastructure far from the front line.