As it discusses ballistic missile sales, China has sent attack drones to Iran.
China is stepping up its support for Iran amid looming US strikes and warning the US’s Arab partners.
China sends attack drones to Iran while discussing the supply of ballistic missiles. China steps up its support for Iran in the face of possible US attacks and warns the US’s Arab partners. Reuters reported this week that China is in talks with Iran to supply it with the CM-302 anti-ship cruise missile. The CM-302 is launched from ships and land and has a range of approximately 290 kilometers. This weapon could reach US ships in the Arabian Sea, as well as in the vicinity of the Iranian coast, in the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf.
Three officials familiar with the matter told Middle East Eye that China is delivering “offensive” weapons, as well as additional “defensive” arms, to Iran at a time when the US is on the cusp of launching an attack on the Islamic Republic.
An Arab official familiar with the deliveries described the offensive weapons as ‘small’ systems. Another regional intelligence official claimed that Beijing had supplied the Islamic Republic with loitering munitions, also known as kamikaze drones.
A second Arab official, who also spoke to MEE, confirmed the delivery of offensive weapons and air defence systems.
In September, Reuters reported the appearance of Chinese kamikaze drones on a battlefield in Sudan.
In July, MEE revealed exclusively that China had supplied Iran with surface-to-air missile batteries following the 12-day war that culminated in the US striking three of the country’s nuclear facilities.
Two Arab sources and a regional intelligence official, all of whom are familiar with the matter, told that China has continued to supply Iran with air defence assets since the summer. The official listed the Chinese systems in Iran’s possession as the HQ-16 and the HQ-17AE.
Providing attack drones could be one way for Beijing to offer Iran some offensive support while considering selling more advanced missiles.
Reuters reported this week that China is in discussions with Iran regarding the supply of CM-302 anti-ship cruise missiles. The CM-302 can be launched from ships or from the ground and has a range of about 290 kilometres. This weapon could potentially target US vessels in the Arabian Sea, as well as those closer to Iran’s shoreline in the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf.
A regional intelligence source told MEE that the two states are also discussing Iran’s potential purchase of China’s DF-17 hypersonic glide missile. While Iran’s ballistic missiles have similar ranges, the DF-17 is more manoeuvrable, enabling it to evade air defence systems.
According to MEE, Iran paid China for the air defence systems in the form of oil shipments. It is unclear how Iran paid for the loitering munitions.
In a report in May, the US Energy Information Administration suggested that 90 per cent of Iran’s crude and condensate exports flow to Beijing.
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Notably, both Arab officials whose governments are US partners told MEE that Beijing had informed their countries, in general terms, of the arms deliveries. This could be an attempt by Beijing to discourage a US attack, demonstrating that it is prepared to stand by Tehran.
Current and former US and Arab officials have told MEE that Beijing may be reluctant to become too involved in any conflict, as it wants to maintain good relations with the US amid ongoing trade tensions.
US President Donald Trump is expected to attend a high-level summit with President Xi Jinping in China in late March and early April. The world’s two largest economies reached a truce after imposing reciprocal tariffs on each other last year.
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The Trump administration has deployed the largest US military force to the Middle East since the invasion of Iraq in 2003. There are currently two aircraft carrier strike groups in the region: the USS Abraham Lincoln is in the Arabian Sea and the USS Gerald R. Ford is in the eastern Mediterranean.
In addition, the region is home to guided-missile destroyers, THAAD air defence systems, and dozens of F-35, F-22, F-15, and F-16 fighter jets, as well as aerial refuelling aircraft.
Iran was battered by Israel during the 12-day war in June. Using American warplanes, Israel dominated the skies over Iran and assassinated Iranian commanders. They also destroyed air defence systems, weapons production facilities and ballistic missile launchpads.
Iran turned to China over the summer as it rushed to repair its decimated air defence network. The Islamic Republic has historic military ties with both Russia and China.
Tehran’s ties with China and Russia
In the late 1980s, Iran received HY-2 Silkworm cruise missiles from China via North Korea while it was at war with Iraq. The Islamic Republic used these missiles to attack Kuwait and to strike a US-flagged oil tanker during the so-called ‘tanker wars’.
In 2010, reports emerged that Iran had received HQ-9 anti-aircraft missiles from China. However, China’s weapons shipments to Iran were generally curtailed by the United Nations arms embargo imposed in 2006. This embargo was reinstated under the so-called Snap-Back sanctions in September 2015.
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Russia’s defence ties with Iran surpassed those with China, but the relationship was transformed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with Moscow diverting much of its attention to the battlefields of Eastern Europe.
On Sunday, the Financial Times reported that Russia had agreed to sell Iran ‘Verba’ man-portable air defence missile systems. Analysts told the newspaper that Russia would not miss the short-range Verba, as it is currently engaged in long-range missile and drone fire with Ukraine.
China’s decision to supply kamikaze drones to Iran suggests that Beijing could be filling a gap left by Russia, which is unable to provide them due to its own demands.
Iran was at the forefront of using inexpensive kamikaze drones to challenge sophisticated Western air defence systems.
In the early years of the war in Ukraine, Russia purchased thousands of Shahed drones from Iran. However, more recently, it has been producing its own domestic version based on Iranian technology, training and design. Given that Russia is carrying out almost daily air raids on Ukraine, it may be reluctant to part with any spare parts.
Iran has been heavily sanctioned, with much of its arms industry being targeted by Israel. As China supplies around 80 per cent of the world’s drone components and is a supplier to both Russia and Ukraine, regional officials told Middle East Eye (MEE) that China could quickly provide Iran with finished kamikaze drones.
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