Telegraph: Five Chinese Ships Transport Materials for Rocket Fuel Production to Iran During the War
April 4, 20264869 ViewsRead Time: 2 Minutes
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An analysis of shipping data published by the British newspaper Telegraph shows that China has transported large quantities of essential chemicals for the production of ballistic missile fuel to Iran, despite the ongoing war and military strikes on Iranian territory.
The essential chemicals include sodium perchlorate, which is the main substance for producing solid rocket fuel, and the quantities transported are sufficient to produce hundreds of missiles, according to experts monitoring the shipments.
The essential chemicals include sodium perchlorate, which is the main substance for producing solid rocket fuel, and the quantities transported are sufficient to produce hundreds of missiles, according to experts monitoring the shipments.
Five Iranian Ships Subject to International Sanctions Transported Fuel from a Major Chinese Port
The ships departed from the Gaolan Port in Zhuhai, China, which is one of the largest storage centers for liquid chemicals in China, and all the ships belong to the Iranian shipping fleet, which is under U.S., European, and British sanctions.
The five ships are: Hamouna, Barzin, Shabdis, Rain, and Zardis, and most of them arrived at Iranian ports between late March and early April.
The Shipments Are Enough to Produce Approximately 785 Additional Missiles
Experts estimate that the recent shipments are larger than previous shipments in 2025, allowing Iran to produce about 785 additional missiles, which would enable it to launch between 10 and 30 missiles daily for an entire month if the same pace continues.
Experts Indicate Iran's Attempt to Maintain Its Missile Capabilities Despite the War
Miad Maleki, a former official at the U.S. Treasury, clarified that these shipments are a clear indication that Iran is trying to address the severe shortage of missile fuel and maintain production capacity, while Professor Jeffrey Lewis from the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies stated that these shipments reflect Iran's continued ability to produce missiles despite airstrikes.
Isaac Kardon from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace described China's continued facilitation of these shipments as a "steady flow," noting that Beijing benefits from the fact that these materials are commercial goods and not ready-made weapons, allowing for legal denial while providing implicit support to the Iranian regime.
The Difficulty of Tracking Shipments Increases International Challenges
The analysis explained that the complexities of tracking, due to the disabling of automatic tracking systems and changing ship names and destinations, make monitoring the arrival of these raw materials in Iran extremely difficult, and future routes may include maritime or land routes through Pakistan.
