Two Iranian cargo ships, the Golbon and the Jairan, are scheduled to sail from China towards Iran in the coming weeks, carrying a significant quantity of a chemical ingredient essential for making missile propellants. The information is from the newspaper Financial Times.
According to information from security authorities in two Western countries, the ships will carry more than 1,000 tons of sodium perchlorate, used in the production of ammonium chlorate, the main component of solid propellant for missiles.
According to officials, the sodium perchlorate to be shipped could result in the production of up to 960 tons of ammonium chlorate, which represents 70% of the propellant needed for solid-fuel missiles. This amount of ammonium chlorate would be enough to power approximately 260 medium-range missiles.
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Ammonium chlorate is one of the chemicals controlled by the Missile Technology Control Regime, an international non-proliferation body.
According to the newspaper, the chemical components are being sent to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the elite wing of the Iranian armed forces.
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Officials reported that 34 6-meter containers containing the chemical were loaded onto the Golbon, which departed from the Chinese island of Daishan on Tuesday (21). The Jairan is expected to leave China with 22 containers in early February.
Both ships, owned by Iranian entities, are expected to make the three-week journey to Iran without stopping at ports. Authorities could not confirm whether Beijing was aware of the shipments.
To the Financial Times, the Chinese embassy in Washington stated that it was “not familiar” with the situation and that Beijing is committed to “maintaining peace and stability in the Middle East and Gulf region, actively promoting the political and diplomatic resolution of the issue Iranian nuclear power plant.”
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According to experts, China has been making major arms sales to Iran since 1979, including supplying missiles during the Iran-Iraq war. Since the 1990s, China has assisted Iran’s ballistic missile development program by providing technology, parts and training.
