China is buying Iranian oil despite US sanctions placed on Iran’s oil exports, providing what Tehran hopes will be a financial lifeline for the country’s buckling economy, said the Financial Times.
Last week the Chinese received their first delivery of an Iranian oil cargo since the Trump administration in May scrapped exemptions on Iranian sanctions. TankerTrackers, which monitors flows of oil through satellite signals and imagery, said the tanker Salina — a Suezmax vessel capable of carrying around 1 million barrels — had docked in Jianzhou Bay, off the coast of eastern China, on June 20.
Oil sales are a crucial part of Iran’s efforts to resist the “maximum pressure” campaign of financial sanctions launched by the US after it pulled out of a landmark nuclear deal last year. This week, Washington imposed a new round of sanctions on the Islamic republic and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, its leader.