China has been providing Iran with crucial dual-use components, which can be used for drones and missile guidance systems, according to Iranian customs data analyzed by The Wall Street Journal. This year through June, approximately 1,300 shipments of such components were sent from China to Iran's Ministry of Defense. This assistance occurred even as China publicly claimed to be de-escalating tensions in the Middle East, with its foreign ministry making numerous calls and President Xi Jinping reportedly offering suggestions to end fighting.
China has also dramatically increased its purchase of Iranian oil, now buying nearly every barrel Iran produces, compared to around 30% a decade ago. This has allowed Iran to earn tens of billions of dollars annually despite stringent U.S. sanctions. To facilitate these purchases, Chinese buyers and Iran expanded a sophisticated sanctions-evasion network involving smaller Chinese banks, front companies, private Chinese refineries, fake invoices, mislabeled crude, and a shadow fleet of tankers. This network has been described by U.S. officials and researchers as one of the world's largest.
As of 2025, Kpler, a commodity research firm, estimated that China bought approximately 1.4 million barrels of oil a day from Iran, representing over 80% of Iran's oil sales that year and more than double the 650,000 barrels a day purchased in 2017. This funding is further facilitated by a barter-like system where state-backed Chinese companies build infrastructure in Iran as compensation for oil. In 2024, an estimated $8.4 billion in oil payments flowed through this conduit. Max Meizlish of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies stated that China is Iran's "chief partner in sanctions evasion," and that Iran "wouldn't be able to fight this war without the years of support that it has received from China."
Chinese companies continue to be critical suppliers of goods with potential military applications, such as motors for Iran's Shahed drones, chemicals for rocket fuels, and electronics for various weapons. Last year, two ships linked to an Iranian state company transported 1,000 tons of material from China that could be used for solid propellant in midrange missiles. Additionally, in mid-2025, Iran ordered thousands of tons of missile fuel ingredients from China. U.S. officials allege that Iran manages a complex, clandestine shadow-banking network globally facilitated by China, where Chinese "teapot" refiners pay for Iranian oil in yuan, and Tehran uses some of the money to buy products from China, or routes it through front companies and Chinese financial institutions to Hong Kong, where it is converted into other currencies.
