By Fariba Raad | 2025-03-31

Reports that two sanctioned Iranian cargo vessels are delivering missile propellent ingredients from China to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas have prompted some US lawmakers to call for sanctions on the Chinese entities.

In a February 4 letter to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, eight US senators called for action to identify and sanction "any Chinese companies sourcing the propellants and any Chinese ports that allow sanctioned Iranian ships to dock."

Tehran imported 1,000 metric tons of sodium perchlorate, per the Financial Times, which when converted to ammonium perchlorate, could produce propellant for 260 Kheibar Shekan or 200 Haj Qassem mid-range missiles.

The chemical also could fuel Palestine-2 ballistic missiles -- the type the Iran-backed Houthis used in January to strike a power plant in the Israeli port of Haifa, according to the Army Recognition Group.

The two Iranian vessels have been identified as Jairan and Golbon, both of which are under US sanctions for ties to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines.

Jairan arrived at Bandar Abbas on March 28, following Golbon, which docked February 13, per MarineTraffic data.

The shipments were destined for the Self Sufficiency Jihad Organization, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) unit responsible for developing ballistic missile capacity, according to Iran Watch.

Urgent need for missile fuel

The deliveries come as the Iranian regime races to restore weapons capabilities after depleting its arsenal in attacks on Israel last year.

In April, the Iranian regime fired an estimated 170 drones, 30 cruise missiles and 120 ballistic missiles toward Israel, according to the Israeli military.

Most were intercepted, with help from US and allied forces, with Israeli retaliation targeting facilities that make the solid propellant for missiles in Shahroud, Parchin and Khojir, according to AFP.

While Tehran has domestic capability to produce missile fuel chemicals, the strikes created an urgent need for external supplies, Foundation for Defense of Democracies researcher Behnam Ben Taleblu told Voice of America.

The Iranian regime likely turned to China as its most reliable partner for acquiring these critical materials, he said.

In their letter to Rubio, the US senators said that reimposing a maximum pressure campaign on the Iranian regime requires imposing costs on China.

"Since the early 1990s, China has assisted the Iranian military extensively with its ballistic missile development program," Georgetown University professor Dennis Wilder told the Financial Times January 22.

China has provided "expertise, technology, parts and training," he said.

Chinese nationals have supported IRGC armaments production "by illicitly procuring and delivering US export-controlled dual-use technology to Iran via front companies," Middle East Institute senior fellow John Calabrese told Pishtaz.