US Sanctions on Iran Fail to Target Key Player: China
The United States has imposed new sanctions on Iran in an effort to force Tehran to reconsider its resistance to US demands. The sanctions target 60 individuals, entities, and vessels, but notably do not include any Chinese financial institutions suspected of facilitating Iran's oil trade.
Iran is the largest buyer of Iranian oil, accounting for over 80% of Iran's seaborne crude exports last year. However, since US restrictions on Iranian oil exports were reimposed in 2019, China's major state-owned refiners have avoided buying Iranian crude, and official Chinese customs data record no direct imports from Iran.
Despite this, Iranian oil has continued to reach China through complex networks of intermediaries and traders. The US Treasury has previously warned two major Chinese banks that they could face secondary sanctions if Iranian funds were found to have passed through their systems.
The UAE has suspended all forms of trade, commercial exchange, and financial transactions with Iran until further notice following a recent missile attack on the Gulf state. Iran's economy minister Ali Madani-Zadeh vowed that his country is 'fully prepared' to resist US pressure, and warned that any country joining US efforts to choke its economy would face 'seismic force'.