Iran rebuilding its ballistic missile arsenal with help from China: report

European intelligence sources, cited by CNN, have revealed that Iran has executed an urgent, massive procurement of 2,000 tons of a chemical precursor from Chinese suppliers for use in its solid-fuel ballistic missile program, directly defying recently reimposed United Nations sanctions.

The shipments of sodium perchlorate, which serves as a key ingredient for manufacturing the solid propellant oxidizer ammonium perchlorate, represent a determined effort by Tehran to rebuild its depleted missile stockpiles following the 12-day war with ‘Israel’ in June 2025.

Experts estimate that the volume, over 2,000 tons, is sufficient to produce enough fuel for more than 500 ballistic missiles.

The deliveries began arriving at the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas on September 29 , just two days after the UN formally reinstated comprehensive “snapback” sanctions on September 27, which explicitly prohibit missile-related activities.

The logistics of the transfer involved a network of ships and entities previously designated under US restrictions.

Western intelligence traced the movements of multiple cargo vessels, including the MV Basht, a container ship linked to the sanctioned Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), which delivered a payload on September 29.

Furthermore, some vessels involved in the transfers obscured their movements by deliberately disabling their Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponders, a known tactic for illicit maritime activity.

The evasion relies on a key technical loophole: while the final oxidizer is restricted, sodium perchlorate is a “dual-use material” and is not explicitly itemized on the list of materials banned for export to Iran.

The US Treasury Department previously designated the PRC-based Shenzhen Amor Logistics Co Ltd for coordinating similar sodium perchlorate shipments to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Responding to the reports, China’s Foreign Ministry maintained a position of plausible deniability.

A spokesperson stated that Beijing “consistently implements export controls on dual-use items in accordance with its international obligations and domestic laws and regulations”.

Simultaneously, the spokesperson called the reimposition of UN sanctions “unconstructive” and a “serious setback” for diplomatic resolution, signaling Beijing’s strategic alignment with Tehran in opposing Western pressure.