Iran is 'striving to sell its stranded oil in China to strengthen its allies'

The Wall Street Journal reported on the loading of about three million barrels of stranded Iranian oil in China and Tehran's efforts to sell them at sea, noting concerns that the revenue from this shipment could be used to strengthen Iran's proxy groups in the region. The newspaper reported on Saturday, January 22, citing informed sources, that after negotiations between Iran and China in late November and December, Beijing finally agreed last month to allow the exit of Iranian oil shipments. According to Wall Street Journal sources, China had previously not given the green light to Iran's requests to remove its stranded oil from the country. A few days ago, Reuters reported that Iran is trying to free 25 million barrels of oil that have been stranded in two Chinese ports for about six years. This 25 million barrels of oil gradually entered China until 2018, but since 2019, when the previous Trump administration revoked exemptions in this regard, no buyers have been found for them, and they have been stuck in rented tanks at Dalian and Zhoushan ports. According to the Wall Street Journal, two oil tankers, 'Mid Star' and 'CH Billion', recently headed to Dalian port to load part of Iran's oil. The report stated that the Mid Star tanker left this port earlier this month with two million barrels of oil, and it is believed that the Billion tanker is still in port and is expected to load 700,000 barrels of oil. According to Wall Street Journal sources, the Mid Star tanker turned off its international signal for three days before entering Dalian port and, after loading, headed for South Korean waters to transfer its cargo to another ship. Iran has not yet reacted to this report, and a spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry told the Wall Street Journal that he is unaware of this matter but that 'Beijing cooperates with all countries, including Iran, within the framework of international law.' This Chinese official reiterated that Beijing opposes 'the unilateral, illegal, and unreasonable sanctions of the United States.' Iran has turned to complex shipping networks to circumvent sanctions and sell its oil; even if a Chinese buyer wants to purchase Iran's stored oil in this country, the shipment must first be transferred outside of China, and the documents must be changed to reflect it as non-Iranian oil. According to the Wall Street Journal, the value of Iran's stranded oil in China is currently over two billion dollars, but Tehran owes about one billion dollars for the rental costs of tanks in the two Chinese ports. The newspaper cited informed sources stating that concerns about the exit of three million barrels of Iranian oil from Chinese ports and Tehran's efforts to sell them by the Revolutionary Guards have increased. According to this report, Iran has allocated the revenue from this action to the Revolutionary Guards, which are involved in arming and financing groups affiliated with the Islamic Republic throughout the Middle East. The Wall Street Journal's report on the exit of three million barrels of Iranian oil from China was published on the eve of Donald Trump's entry into the White House. The previous administration of Mr. Trump pursued a maximum pressure policy, especially to prevent the sale of Iranian oil, and his associates have stated that this policy will return on January 20. Reports indicate that alongside the Islamic Republic's efforts to continue arming its supported groups in the Middle East, Tehran officials are also continuing to send money for the reconstruction of civilian infrastructure in areas controlled by these groups. Six weeks after the ceasefire that ended the war between Israel and Hezbollah, many Lebanese whose homes were destroyed in the war are calling for reconstruction, and reports indicate that the Islamic Republic of Iran is financially assisting this process. The Associated Press reported on Sunday, January 23, that Hezbollah, which had funded part of the 2.8 billion dollar reconstruction costs after the 2006 war, is now starting to compensate residents of southern Lebanon with financial assistance from Iran. According to sources in this report, so far, amounts ranging from 194 to 14,000 dollars have been paid to some families. Hezbollah has also mobilized 145 reconstruction teams with over 1,250 engineers and hundreds of analysts and auditors, all funded by Iran.