Two Iranian ships owned by a sanctioned state shipping line have left a Chinese chemical port laden with cargo bound for Iran, amid ongoing conflict in the Middle East involving the United States and Iran.
The vessels, Shabdis and Barzin, belong to the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), a company sanctioned by the United States, United Kingdom, and European Union. The US State Department has described IRISL as the preferred shipping line for Iranian proliferators and procurement agents.
The ships departed from Gaolan port in Zhuhai, a southeastern Chinese coastal city, according to an analysis by The Washington Post of ship-tracking data, satellite imagery, and Treasury Department records.
Chemical cargo concerns
Experts indicate that Gaolan serves as a loading point for industrial chemicals, including sodium perchlorate, a key precursor in producing solid rocket fuel essential for Iran’s missile programme.
The Barzin has been identified in prior reports and expert assessments as a known carrier of sodium perchlorate.
A dozen other IRISL vessels have visited the port since the start of the year, but allowing these ships to depart with potentially weapons-related materials during the current war stands out as particularly significant, experts noted.
China’s position on the conflict
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stated on Sunday that China’s stance on the Middle East war remains objective and impartial.
He emphasised that Beijing’s principled position focuses on achieving a ceasefire and ending hostilities, calling for an immediate halt to military operations.
Wang urged major countries to play a constructive role, acting with justice and righteousness to promote peace and encourage political settlements through negotiations.
He reiterated China’s commitment to non-interference in internal affairs, stressing respect for Iran’s national sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity, while affirming that regional issues should be resolved independently by countries in the region.
Deliberate policy choice
Despite China’s calls for peace, the ships appear to have been permitted to leave with what experts assess is likely sodium perchlorate.
Isaac Kardon, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told The Washington Post that China could have delayed the vessels through administrative measures, customs holds, or other bureaucratic tools but chose not to.
He described this as a deliberate policy choice, agreeing that the cargo was probably sodium perchlorate based on shipping patterns.
Miad Maleki, a former US Treasury official involved in Iran sanctions and now a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, also assessed that the vessels carried sodium perchlorate.
He noted that Gaolan hosts some of the largest liquid chemical storage terminals in southern China.
The United States has long accused China of supplying Iran with missile-related technology and materials, though sodium perchlorate itself is not controlled under the Missile Technology Control Regime nor specifically banned for export to Iran by the United Nations.
China has maintained that US claims overstate issues involving dual-use and commercial trade.
Sodium perchlorate is used to produce ammonium perchlorate, which is controlled by the MTCR and prohibited for sale to Iran.
The US has sanctioned several China-based companies for transferring sodium perchlorate to Iran, including Shenzhen Amor Logistics, China Chlorate Tech Co., Ltd., and Yanling Chuanxing Chemical Plant General Partnership in April 2025.
In September 2025, the Treasury Department sanctioned a multinational procurement network accused of obtaining and transporting hundreds of metric tons of missile propellant ingredients from China since 2023.
About The Author
