A leaked internal document from Russia’s powerful Federal Security Service (FSB) reveals growing distrust toward China, with the agency branding Beijing as “the enemy” in an eight-page planning document obtained by The New York Times.
The document, reportedly authored by a previously undisclosed FSB unit, warns that China poses a serious and expanding threat to Russian national security.
China is increasingly trying to recruit Russian scientists and intelligence officers, the document states, adding that Beijing is aggressively targeting “dissatisfied individuals” with access to sensitive military and technological information.
Spying on Ukraine and Arctic espionage
FSB officers claim that Chinese agents are actively monitoring Russian military operations in Ukraine. Their aim, according to the document, is to analyse Western-supplied weapons and learn modern warfare techniques.
“Chinese intelligence conducts espionage in the Arctic using mining companies and university research centers as cover,” the report alleges, raising alarms over Beijing’s dual-use civilian infrastructure and scientific engagement.
Fears over territorial ambitions
The document also expresses concern that China could be laying groundwork to eventually challenge Russian territorial claims, particularly in sparsely populated and strategically significant regions near their shared border.
Counterintelligence program ‘Entente-4’ launched Before Ukraine invasion
Strikingly, just three days before Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the FSB launched a new counterintelligence program titled Entente-4—a name seen as a pointed irony, given Moscow’s public embrace of Beijing.
The report notes that with most of Russia’s espionage resources focused on Ukraine, the FSB feared China might take advantage of the shift. The timing was likely not accidental.
FSB orders surveillance of Chinese collaborators
Since 2022, the FSB says it has documented a sharp increase in Chinese efforts to infiltrate Russian institutions. In response, Russian officers were directed to hold face-to-face meetings with Russian citizens cooperating closely with China.
They were instructed to eliminate the threat and prevent the transfer of critical information, the document states, adding, Beijing seeks to exploit Russia and gain access to advanced scientific research.
Surveillance, suspicion, and polygraphs
The report further reveals a climate of deep mutual suspicion between the two powers. Chinese intelligence reportedly monitors returning operatives using polygraph tests and controls over 20,000 Russian students currently in China.
The FSB warns that Chinese agents often seek out Russians married to Chinese citizens for potential recruitment. The goal: to penetrate Russia’s state institutions through trusted, vulnerable personal connections.
A hidden intelligence battle
Though Russia and China have publicly declared a “no limits” partnership, the FSB document reveals a behind-the-scenes intelligence struggle. It describes a “tense and dynamically developing intelligence battle in the shadows between the two outwardly friendly nations.”
While the document is undated, clues suggest, as per the news report, it was likely drafted in late 2023 or early 2024, underscoring the ongoing strain in bilateral ties despite surface-level cooperation.
