Iranian vessels transport 1,000 tons of missile propellant materials from China

The materials being transported are sufficient to make 1,300 tons of propellant, which could power 260 mid-range Iranian missiles.

By World Israel News Staff

Two Iranian cargo vessels are carrying missile propellant materials back to Iran from China, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.

The Iranian-flagged ships — the Golbon and the Jairan — are transporting 1,000 tons of sodium perchlorate, a valuable raw material for producing propellant for missiles, according to information based on intelligence from two Western security officials, the report said.

The sodium perchlorate, which is transformed into ammonium perchlorate in the propellant-producing process, is enough to make 1,300 tons of propellant, which could power 260 mid-range Iranian missiles.

Ammonium perchlorate is a controlled substance listed by the Missile Technology Control Regime, an international anti-proliferation body.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC) is in charge of transporting the materials from China back to Iran.

On Tuesday, the Golbon departed the Chinese island of Daishan, and the Jairan is expected to leave China with 22 containers in early February.

Both ships are expected to take three weeks to make the journey back to Iran.

Officials were unsure whether Beijing was aware of the shipments to Iran, but the Chinese government has been implicated before in supporting Iran’s terror regime.

The Russian and Chinese governments are working behind the scenes to undermine international support for Israel and to spread pro-Hamas propaganda, according to a New York Times report.

Citing information provided by the Tel Aviv-based social media intel company Cyabra, the Times report claims that Moscow and Beijing have aligned with Tehran in support of Hamas following the terror organization’s October 7th attack.

Since the invasion, China, Russia, and Iran have all used their state-controlled media outlets to promote Hamas claims downplaying or outright denying the terrorist organization’s atrocities while accusing Israel of persecuting Palestinians and even committing genocide.

Beyond their use of official state media outlets, China, Russia, and Iran are also utilizing armies of online bots and fake social media accounts to spread pro-Hamas and anti-Israel propaganda.