Iran's Use of Chinese Banks for Money Transfers to the Quds Force

Reuters reports that a new report from a Western intelligence agency 'indicates' that Iran is using Chinese banks to transfer money to companies linked to the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). This news was published on Tuesday, November 27, and the source is a seven-page report from a Western intelligence agency, although no further information about this agency or the sources of the report has been provided. The report states that 'Shenzhen Longhao', owned by the Quds Force, is one of several companies based in China that receive money from Iran through a Chinese bank. The report adds that the Central Bank of Iran has opened accounts at the Kunlun Bank, which is a subsidiary of the China National Petroleum Corporation, for this purpose. According to Reuters, Iranian companies controlled by the Quds Force, including an investment company named Bamdad, conduct transactions from these accounts to certain Chinese entities that are either directly controlled by the Quds Force or, like 'Shenzhen Longhao', belong to the Quds Force. The report's authors visited the registered address for 'Shenzhen Longhao' in Shenzhen, southern China, but did not find such a company at that address, and the building manager stated that he had never heard of such a company. The report notes that when money is transferred from Kunlun Bank and other entities, the Quds Force can use it for 'conducting purchases in China and financing various covert operations in other countries'. However, the report does not address whether the Chinese government or Kunlun Bank officials are aware of the potential connection between Kunlun's financial transactions and the Quds Force. The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Kunlun Bank in 2012 for its business dealings with Iran and money transfers for the IRGC, but at that time, there was no mention of the Quds Force, the IRGC's extraterritorial force. The new report indicates that the exact amount of money the Quds Force may have received through Kunlun Bank is unclear, but the total amount transferred from the Central Bank of Iran to Kunlun over the past year has been 'hundreds of millions of dollars'. The Quds Force is typically referred to as a force that provides money and weapons to groups such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas, and Shia militias in Iraq. Washington designated the Quds Force as a supporter of terrorism in 2007, and the European Union also sanctioned the Quds Force in 2011. Mohammad Ali Jafari, the commander of the IRGC, stated on September 16 that the extraterritorial branch of this military force, known as the Quds Force, has had a 'good performance' in Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq and has provided 'intellectual and educational support to Islamic movements'.