Ghost Ship: China and Iran’s Deepening Alliance
At the start of February, an Iranian ship set sail from China carrying sodium perchlorate, a key ingredient in the production of the solid propellant that powers Iran’s mid-range missiles, according to European Intelligence Sources (Vandoorne 2025). That ship has long reached its destination and distributed its cargo.
However, as this article is being written, a second vessel is on the move. The second ship, Jairan, left the Chinese city of Zhuhai on March 10th and will make landfall in Iran’s main port, Bandar Abbas, on March 26th (Marine Traffic 2025). Both of these ships carry a total of 1,000 tons of sodium perchlorate, enough for 260 solid rocket motors for Iran’s Kheibar Shekan missiles or 200 of the Haj Qasem ballistic missiles (Vandoorne 2025). What do these two ships tell us?
The timing of these shipments is not unprecedented since it is coming at a time when Iran’s regional stability is seriously threatened. The ousting of Bashar Al-Assad in Syria, Hezbollah’s losses in Lebanon, and the Israeli airstrike on one of Iran’s key weapons production sites in October have all given Khamenei reasons to bolster Iran’s arsenal. Despite the many sanctions placed on Iran by Western powers, the delivery of sodium perchlorate by itself is not illegal and does not breach any sanctions. It is reasonable to assume that the Chinese government knew exactly what the sodium perchlorate would be used for and allowed for it to be shipped anyway, effectively arming a direct threat to the West. When CNN reached out to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs for comment, they stated that they were not aware of the specifics and went on further to speak out against “illegal unilateral sanctions” and “arbitrary smearing and accusations that lack evidence” (Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, quoted in CNN 2025). The statement also added that “sodium perchlorate is not a controlled item by China, and its export would be considered normal trade” (Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, quoted in CNN 2025).
This shipment, while technically innocent, has far broader implications for U.S. and European foreign policy, especially for further interactions with Iran and China. It’s no secret that China and Iran are allied on the world stage, with both being key members of BRICS, the SCO, and their very own lucrative bilateral trade agreement. This growing alliance has been making Washington nervous and was certainly exacerbated due to China, Russia, and Iran conducting joint naval exercises in the Gulf of Oman earlier this month (Al Jazeera 2025). Furthermore, Iran has supplied Russia with over 3,000 drones in their war against Ukraine, according to the Council on Foreign Relations(2022). And who can forget the landmark deal between China and Iran in 2021, where China agreed to invest $400 billion into Iran’s economy over the next 25 years, specifically within the energy, oil, gas, and petrochemicals sectors, with another investment of $120 billion towards upgrading Iran's transportation and manufacturing infrastructure? In return, China receives a steady and heavily discounted supply of oil from Iran.
In conclusion, China and Iran’s growing partnership is so much more than a couple of ships passing by in the night. It is a strategic alliance that challenges Western influence in both the Middle East and beyond. Through military cooperation, economic investments, and the quiet circumvention of sanctions and the transport of sensitive chemicals, Beijing and Tehran are steadily reshaping global power dynamics. For the U.S. and its European allies, this relationship poses a significant foreign policy dilemma: how does one contain Iran’s military expansion while also managing an increasingly assertive China? As China deepens its foothold in the Middle East through various coalitions and trade agreements, Western policymakers will need to recalibrate their strategies, balancing diplomacy and economic pressure to counter the long-term consequences of the shifting geopolitical landscape.
Sources
CNN
Lister, Tim. "Iran Is Rearming Its Missile Program, and a Ship of Supplies Just Arrived from China, Western Sources Say." CNN, 13 Feb. 2025, www.cnn.com.
MarineTraffic
Jairan Vessel Details. MarineTraffic, 2025, www.marinetraffic.com.
Al Jazeera
"Iran, Russia, China Conduct Joint Naval Drills in Gulf of Oman." Al Jazeera, 12 Mar. 2025, www.aljazeera.com.
Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)
Bowen, Andrew S. "Can Iranian Drones Turn Russia’s Fortunes in the Ukraine War?" Council on Foreign Relations, 2025, www.cfr.org.
Image Source: https://www.maritimegateway.com/dozens-of-ships-unable-to-unload-at-iranian-ports-as-payment-systems-complicate/