The following comment on the various ways in which China has been supporting Iran in defending its sovereignty has been collectively drafted by the members of the Friends of Socialist China US committee.
Increasingly countries are able to resist U.S. imperialism’s most violent, unpredictable attacks and overwhelming firepower by sharing simple technology, resisting U.S. sanctions and increasing trade with each other.
Iran has made stunning progress in self-defense capability by developing many thousands of relatively low tech, far less expensive drones. The Pentagon and the Zionist military is forced to burn through precious supplies of fabulously expensive and complex interceptor missiles in an effort to block barrages of Iranian drones that are very effective.
Until recently the U.S. had a chokehold on many forms of technology. Those days are past.
Iran has acquired significant and strategic technological, military, and surveillance capability from China, strengthening its defense capabilities and internal security infrastructure. Key areas include missile components, air defense systems, drone technology, AI-enabled surveillance, and satellite navigation via the Beidou system to track U.S. forces. This boosts Iran’s operational capabilities.
Although satellites are now precise enough to read the license on a car from space, all of the maps available commercially are clouded over on U.S. bases and important industrial and military sites. Only the Pentagon had full access or the ability to read in real time tens of thousands of complex images.
Real-Time Intelligence Sharing:
But once technology exists it is impossible to keep it in a box.
China has utilized its fleet of 500+ satellites to provide the world with constant SIGINT (Signals Intelligence) and terrain mapping. This support helps Iran track US naval movements in the Persian Gulf in real-time.
Chinese commercial satellite firms, notably MizarVision, have publicly released high-resolution, AI-annotated, satellite images of U.S. military bases and assets throughout West Asia.
The company specialises in generating geospatial intelligence. The images appear in near-real time. So U.S. aircraft, naval vessels, and air defense systems (such as Patriot and THAAD systems) are visible in locations including Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Bahrain.
Conventional armed forces are now vulnerable to observation from hundreds of satellites in low Earth orbit. A number of the facilities and assets posted by MizarVision were subsequently targeted by Iran in missile and drone strikes, which were launched after the US and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury on 28 February.
The deluge of material shows how difficult it has become to hide military assets..
MizarVision’s account on X media site made its first post on 24 February, four days before the U.S. launched their sneak attack.
This now publicly accessible imagery can be downloaded almost immediately, offering a cheap source of real-time intelligence. The images of U.S. bases, naval groups and air defence systems, are all labelled and geolocated using artificial intelligence.
China has also supplied to Iran advanced UHF-band radars like the YLC-8B, which uses low-frequency waves to negate the radar-absorbent coatings used by US stealth bombers and fighters.
Iran has been able to transition to the Chinese BeiDou satellite navigation system as an alternative to the US-created GPS system to avoid manipulation and prevent US intelligence from using it to track Iranian targets within the country.
It is well known that in the face of the harshest U.S. sanctions against Iran and a demand that every other nation comply with U.S. sanctions and join in blockading Iran, China has continued a steady trade with Iran utilizing both open trade and shadow fleets. China accounts for 80 to 90% of Iran’s total oil exports. Other key imports include Liquified Natural Gas – LNG, petrochemicals, plastics, iron/steel, copper and mineral-based products.
This life line is part of a 25-year strategic cooperation agreement signed in 2021. In return China gives concrete assistance in infrastructure development, providing machinery, mechanical appliances, and parts, electrical machinery and electronics, tractors and trucks.
China has provided extensive diplomatic support for Iran, denouncing the US-Israeli war as being a flagrant violation of international law, and demanding at the UN Security Council that Iran’s sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity should be respected and that the US should immediately stop their military operations. China has also clearly pledged continuing humanitarian assistance.
The most important component is Iran’s determination to defend itself and to acquire the technology, training and skills to maintain and strengthen its sovereignty.
Increasingly countries determined to survive U.S. domination recognize the value of sharing skills and technology in confronting a vicious system built on maximizing profits to billionaire corporations.
