Shaheen Urges Trump to Press Xi on China's Iran Support — SkimNews
Get the Geopolitics newsletter
Daily geopolitics — wars, elections, sanctions, the diplomatic moves that move markets. Free.
- Senator Jeanne Shaheen said Trump should press Xi at this week's summit to stop Chinese firms from providing Iran with satellite imagery, missile and drone components, and access to sanctioned oil markets.
- Iran obtained high-resolution satellite imagery of a U.S. base in Jordan from Chinese entities before launching a missile attack that killed three American soldiers and wounded four others.
- About 90% of Iran's oil exports go to China, providing Tehran with "billions of dollars" in revenue and a "critical economic lifeline," according to Shaheen.
- Chinese and Hong Kong companies supplied components used in Iranian ballistic missiles and drones, Shaheen said in a Senate speech.
- Shaheen called on the administration to enforce sanctions against Chinese entities helping Iran and warned that "if China doesn't stop, Congress should impose additional consequences."
- Shaheen urged Trump to use authorities in recently enacted Russian sanctions legislation against Chinese purchasers of Russian energy, calling China "the top funder of the war in Ukraine, as well as being one of the top funders of the war in Iran."
Why it matters: Shaheen is tying the upcoming U.S.-China summit agenda directly to American casualties in Jordan, raising the political stakes for Trump: if he cannot secure concrete Chinese concessions on Iran's oil revenue and weapons supply chains, congressional Democrats are poised to push new sanctions legislation targeting Beijing — a confrontation that could bleed into trade and broader geopolitical negotiations already on the table.
Ask SkimNews
