China sent Iran 1,300 shipments of drone, missile components this year – report

China has sent around 1,300 air shipments containing dual-use components for drones and missiles to Iran’s Defense Ministry this year through the end of June, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing Iranian customs data.

According to the report, one shipment arrived in Tehran as the US and Iran agreed to a temporary ceasefire on June 17 and Beijing publicly touted its efforts to help end the fighting.

The shipment contained Chinese “dual-use” electronics components that could be used in Iran’s drones and missile guidance systems, the report said. Two days later, more than a dozen shipments arrived carrying over $6 million worth of parts that could be used in drones.

The deliveries were part of a surge in cargo flights from China to Iran that provided Tehran with a key supply route for its weapons programs as US sanctions and a naval blockade restricted maritime trade, according to the report.

Iranian customs records reviewed by the Journal showed shipments containing GPS devices, electric motors, aircraft engine parts and other dual-use equipment. Some were designated as defense imports exempt from Iranian tariffs.

Mahan Air, an Iranian airline under US sanctions that Washington has accused of ferrying cash, weapons and personnel for Iran, sharply increased its China-Iran flights after the war began, according to flight-tracking data. By late April, it was operating around 27 flights a week from Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou to Tehran, up from four a week at the beginning of March.

Mahan did no respond the Journal’s requests for comment.

The report said that the shipments formed part of broader Chinese support that has helped Iran sustain its weapons programs and economy during the war. China remains the main buyer of Iranian oil despite US sanctions. Washington has sanctioned a series of Chinese and Hong Kong entities accused of helping Tehran obtain military components.

Earlier this month, the Journal reported that Chinese entities supplied Iran with high-quality satellite imagery of a US Air Force base in Jordan both before and after Tehran launched a deadly ballistic missile attack on the facility on July 17, citing US officials familiar with the matter.

Beijing has repeatedly refused to acknowledge that any Chinese firms have supplied Iran with satellite imagery to target US forces, according to the sources cited by the Journal.

Chinese companies have additionally helped supply Iran with chemical precursors used in weapons production, according to Thursday’s report, which cited an unspecified document and sources familiar with the matter.

The revelations came ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s summit with US President Donald Trump in Washington this week, where Beijing’s support for Tehran is reportedly expected to loom over talks.

Beijing has rejected accusations that it is fueling the conflict, saying it abides by international rules and pushing back against “attempts to smear China by associating it with the conflict.” China has also said that it strictly controls exports of dual-use goods and that it rejects unilateral US sanctions on trade with Iran.

Iranian officials did not respond to the Journal’s requests for comment.