Leaked Documents Show Russia May Be Helping China Plan an Invasion of Taiwan

The leak that lit the fuse

A cache of roughly 800 pages of contracts and internal correspondence has surfaced online, and a respected British defense institute says the documents show Moscow is training and equipping a Chinese airborne battalion for fighting in Taiwan. Researchers at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) reviewed the material, along with independent verification from analysts in Kyiv. Multiple outlets have seen portions of the files and their assessments converge. Russia would train Chinese paratroopers and sell them specialized kit, building a ladder from theory to action for an air assault on Taiwan.

Russia is helping China to prepare for an invasion of Taiwan, particularly with an airborne attack. The authoritarian alliance is growing stronger and democracies must respond.https://t.co/Uoo0c8641D pic.twitter.com/8YsDykZLjk

— Michael Ron Bowling (@mrbcyber) September 26, 2025

Who is behind the planning

The paperwork points to a state-to-state package. On the Russian side, the defense industry and airborne community are the key actors. Production houses like Kurganmashzavod and Rubin would host training on vehicles and command systems. On the Chinese side, the People’s Liberation Army Airborne Corps is the intended recipient. The end state is a trained, equipped battalion that can insert by air, seize key nodes, and link up with follow-on forces. The analysis ties the effort to Beijing’s directive for the PLA to be ready for a Taiwan operation by 2027.

What the documents say

The leaked package outlines hardware, training, and doctrine transfer. Hardware first. Russia would provide light armored vehicles and anti-armor guns suitable for airdrop. Outlets that saw line items list BMD 4M infantry fighting vehicles and Sprut SDM1 125 mm guns, along with airborne command systems and troop carriers. Some reporting pegs the value higher than two hundred million dollars, and others place it near the mid hundreds, which suggests phased tranches or separate annexes.

Training is the second pillar. Russian instructors would coach Chinese paratroopers in complex assault tactics, to include vehicle airdrops, battalion-level command and control, and infiltration techniques reminiscent of Russia’s Crimea playbook. The files also describe high altitude parachute systems for long range insertions, the kind of kit that can move small special forces teams onto airfields, ports, and communications hubs without early detection. Think of it like giving a locksmith the lock, the combination, and the instructions on how to silence the alarm.