China's Secret Support for Iran: 1,300 Shipments Fueling Weapons Programs
A recent Wall Street Journal investigation has uncovered significant evidence of Chinese shipments fueling Iran's weapons programs, despite US sanctions. The report reveals that Chinese suppliers sent around 1,300 shipments of dual-use components to Iran's defense ministry in the first half of 2026.
The findings include thousands of shipments listed in Iranian customs records, including GPS devices, electric motors, and aircraft engine parts, many citing a tariff exemption for defense imports. One shipment of electronics components used in drone and missile guidance systems arrived in Tehran on the same day the US and Iran signed a 60-day truce in June.
More than a dozen additional shipments worth over $6 million in drone-usable parts followed two days later. China has become the only major buyer of Iranian oil despite US sanctions, providing billions of dollars to Tehran this year through Chinese front companies and banks that route transactions using China's currency to evade US oversight.