Laden Iranian ships depart Chinese port tied to key military chemicals

"China could have held these vessels at port, imposed an administrative delay, invented a customs hold - any number of bureaucratic tools, but didn't. That's a deliberate policy choice made during an active war in which Beijing publicly calls for restraint."

"The Shabdis and the Barzin - which can carry up to 6,500 and 14,500 20-foot-long containers, respectively - had docked at the Gaolan port in Zhuhai, a city on China's southeastern coast. Experts told The Post that Gaolan is a loading port for chemicals including sodium perchlorate, a key precursor for solid rocket fuel that Iran desperately needs for its missile program."

"The vessels are part of the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), a state-owned company under U.S., British and European Union sanctions that has been described by the U.S. State Department as the 'preferred shipping line for Iranian proliferators and procurement agents.'"

Two vessels from Iran's state-owned shipping company (IRISL) departed Gaolan port in China carrying cargo headed for Iran. The ships, Shabdis and Barzin, are part of a company under U.S., British, and EU sanctions and designated as the preferred shipping line for Iranian proliferators. Experts indicate the cargo likely includes sodium perchlorate, a key precursor for solid rocket fuel essential to Iran's missile program. China's decision to allow these vessels to depart during active U.S.-Iran conflict represents a deliberate policy choice, as Beijing possessed multiple bureaucratic tools to delay or prevent departure but chose not to exercise them.

Read at The Washington Post