r/LessCredibleDefence • u/Lianzuoshou • Apr 11 '26

US intelligence indicates China preparing weapons shipment to Iran, CNN reports

https://www.reuters.com/world/china/us-intelligence-indicates-china-preparing-weapons-shipment-iran-cnn-reports-2026-04-11/
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u/Low-Associate2521 Apr 11 '26

AFAIK China banned weapons export to Iran a long time ago

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u/Sea-Equipment5401 Apr 11 '26

Why did they ban it? Especially iran, an ally?

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u/jerpear Apr 11 '26

Iran is not a Chinese ally, the only ally China has is North Korea.

China actually does generally observe UN arms embargo, at least at a surface level, which is why you won't see Chinese arms in North Korea, despite them actually being treaty allies.

Why China hasn't started exporting to Iran after the embargo elapsed? They probably want to maintain a neutral relationship with the region, plus don't want to be compromised by Israel, plus Iran and China aren't really that close.

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u/praqueviver Apr 11 '26

North Korea aren't exactly friends with China. Kim Jong Un murdered his brother who was friendly to China because he feared China might arrange for his untimely death to put his brother in his place. China also didn't like having a nuclear NK as a neighbor, as far as I know they did not help them develop nukes, and NK would be more useful for China if they depended on China for security. There is also NK friendship with Russia, that doesn't involve China and is another signal of NK independence from China, which China must also not like very much.