Is China helping Iran secretly in its conflict against Israel?

There are reports that, as the battle between Israel and Iran raged over the past few days, China sent three mystery cargo planes to Tehran. Some are concerned that these planes contain weapons that Iran could deploy against Israel .

But what happened? What do we know? And why would China help Iran?

Three planes from China, all Boeing 747s , departed for Iran in three consecutive days. The first one left on Saturday, a day after Israel launched its first attacks on Iran. The second departed for Iran on Sunday and the third left for Iran on Monday.

These types of Boeing 747s are often used to transport heavy-duty military equipment.

All three planes charted the same flight path – heading west along northern China into Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan. The planes then dropped off the radar near Iran. Though all three flights showed Luxembourg as their final destination, the aircraft never went near Europe.

The type of planes and the flight patterns have led many to think that China is coming to Iran’s aid.

Why would China help Iran?

This is because China and Iran are strategic partners and aligned against the US-led western order.

China and Iran are strategic partners aligned against the US-led world order, and Beijing has a history of supplying Tehran with military equipment including conventional arms and ballistic missile materials that could potentially be used for nuclear weapons.

International sanctions since the 2000s have seen direct arms transfers decrease significantly, with the focus shifting towards “dual-use” materials.

Iran, in return, is one of China’s key energy suppliers.

Iran also supplies much of the energy China uses – around two million barrels of oil every day. In fact, Iran sends over 90 per cent of its oil exports to China. Beijing’s refining sector is said to be incredibly dependent on cheap oil from Tehran. Tehran, which is facing an oil ban from the West, is forced to sell its crude oil under the radar.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)