This project is a year long investigation that shed light on significant loopholes of supply chains which enabled China’s main nuclear lab to obtain Western sensitive technologies. The investigation found that the China’s research institution had possibly obtained Western sensitive technologies for years unbeknownst to the U.S. and allies and could use them to develop nuclear weapons.
Nikkei analyzed more than 900 bidding and contract documents disclosed by the military lab since 2022 with experts, and unveiled that it has procured many Western machine tools via biddings, circumventing international export regulations. Machine tools are subject to export controls in various countries because they are the heart of modern manufacturing and could be used for developing nuclear weapons.
Nikkei’s investigation raised a question that Western sensitive technology has fueled China’s nuclear forces buildup unintentionally.
Our team has been following the issues on economic security and supply chain risks as the U.S.-China confrontation has intensifies.
There had always been suspicion that Western technology was leaking to China, but there has been little clear evidence so far. In that sense, this article is significant in that it has obtained official bidding documents and has turned up dozens of names of Western companies and products mentioned in the documents as hard evidence. While these trades appear to be legal for Western companies, they highlight the difficulties of export control.
With China limiting its publicly available data, we utilized OSINT method to show the whole picture and structual problems.
Since the supply chains of nuclear industry are complicated and the technology of machine tools are difficult to understand, we focused on writing clearly.
Moreover, we thought that the project was needed to focus on an individual to make the article more narrative. We have collected a bunch of videos and photos published by China’s state media that actually showed that a Chinese engineer was operating a high-performance advanced machine tool of a Japanese manufacturer. And we finally identified the Chinese technician belonging to the nuclear lab in the videos and photos. After clearing up any legal issues, we cited his face and name to improve the appeal of the story.
