Fact Check: Does Video Show Chinese Military Convoys at Russian Border?

China and Russia's leadership have both experienced increased global scrutiny this week, amid recent reports of riots and even coups (though the latter appears to be misinformation).

Russian president Vladimir Putin's move to partially mobilize the country against Ukraine led to protests in Moscow, while unsubstantiated and later debunked rumors that Chinese president Xi Jinping was under house arrest swirled on social media.

So, when video of Chinese tanks "near the Russian border" were posted online amid these developments, it appeared the two eastern nations were set to instigate even more chaos and uncertainty within them.

The Claim

A tweet posted on September 24, 2022, claims that "Chinese army convoys were spotted near the Russian border..... "

The tweet goes on to suggest the army was setting up to make a move against "Evil NATO."

The video shows dozens of armored vehicles stationed in a straight line along a highway.

The Facts

Media blackouts by both China and Russia create a fertile ground for online misinformation, witnessed repeatedly throughout war in Ukraine.

Footage may be repurposed or inaccurately described to mislead viewers; video of military hardware and technology is particularly vulnerable to this kind of manipulation.

As is the case here, the tweet implies that the footage was shot recently when, in fact, it's been online for some time.

It was uploaded elsewhere in 2021, with separate claims by the man filming (via translation) that "Chinese tanks are already in Russia... China's occupation of the Asian part of Russia is systematically heading towards its final phase."

However, the earliest upload Newsweek could find was from 2018, on YouTube with the title "Joint exercises 2018."

Someone speaking in the video can be heard saying: "The Chinese... the Chinese again. Vehicles heading into Russia. They are going to take over soon.

"Look how many there are. Every day there are three columns like this one going into Russia.

"They will invade us soon, we need to kill the b*******s."

Despite the alarming voiceover, many of the comments in the video and most evidence suggests that the vehicles were there as part of Vostok 2018, a joint military training exercise in which (according to NATO) China sent 3,000 troops, 900 tanks and 30 fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters to the Chita region of Russia.

Far from an invasion or evidence of a Chinese "take over," other footage shows tanks and other military vehicles being sent back to China after Vostok 2018 ended.

There are very few clues within the low quality footage to pinpoint where the tanks were; comments underneath the footage suggest Vladivostok in the far-east of Russia. This, however, would put the tanks thousands of miles from Chita and make for a far more circuitous route.

Video footage of the military hardware returning to China suggests at least part of its journey was made by train, making it harder to pinpoint where it could have disembarked.

In any case, the video on social media was not recorded recently, does not appear to have been shot along the Chinese/Russian border and does not appear to be part of an excursion against NATO nations or Russia.

While China has cooperated with Russia throughout the conflict in Ukraine, recent speculation suggests the relationship may be cooling.

Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander retired U.S. Navy Admiral James Stavridis said Russia could be abandoned by China if a nuclear weapon was used in Ukraine.

The Ruling

Misleading Material.

Though the footage is real, the tanks seen in it were not recently spotted along the Russian Chinese border. The footage is from 2018 and is thought to be part of Vostok-2018, a joint military training drill organized between China and Russia.

FACT CHECK BY Newsweek's Fact Check team