China is ignoring U.S. sanctions and buying Iranian oil at a staggering rate, according to a new analysis highlighting Tehran’s transfer of billions in crude profits to its anti-Israel allies in the region, including the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
“Hamas alone receives $100 million each year from its Iranian patrons, with horrific results,” asserts the “October 2023 Iran Tanker Tracker” analysis published Wednesday by United Against Nuclear Iran, a U.S.-based advocacy group critical of the Iranian regime.
UANI researchers wrote that Iran has exported “well north of $80 billion worth of its oil” since the start of the Biden administration.
“The barbaric atrocity inflicted by Iran-backed Hamas on Oct. 7 has reignited the question of how to stop billions of petro-dollars flowing to the head of the snake in Tehran,” they wrote.
The analysis highlights China as the top buyer, despite U.S. laws imposing sanctions on Iranian banks processing the oil sale profits, as well as secondary sanctions targeting dozens of international companies involved in the shipment of Iranian oil to Asia. The Trump administration re-imposed the sanctions after unilaterally pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal in 2018.
China bought an average of roughly 1 million barrels per day of Iranian crude in October alone, according to UANI. The figure was slightly lower than the 1.2 million bpd and 1.7 million bpd that China purchased in September and August, respectively.
The bipartisan advocacy group, which is based in New York, identified Syria and the United Arab Emirates as the second and third biggest buyers of Iranian crude. Syria bought an average of 119,527 bpd in October and the United Arab Emirates purchased an average of 123,091 bpd, according to UANI.
The findings come in the wake of an Oct. 23 Congressional Research Service report that said, “Iran’s exports have risen in 2023, with most of this increase attributed to China.”
“Chinese buyers may have concluded that the economic benefits of continuing to buy Iranian petroleum exceed the risks of potential U.S. sanctions for
several reasons,” according to the CRS report, which suggested the Biden administration may be willingly turning a blind eye on China’s purchases of Iranian crude.
“Some observers have speculated that competing global interests, a desire not to escalate tensions with China, or the pursuit of lower petroleum prices may also inform the Biden administration’s Iran sanctions policy in a way that de-prioritizes the enforcement of sanctions,” the CRS report stated.
It noted that last month’s Hamas attack on Israel — Iran’s archenemy — increased congressional concern over the lack of sanction enforcement.
The UANI analysis, meanwhile, pointed to a report by The Maritime Executive citing momentum among U.S. senators toward “putting teeth into existing restrictions” on Iran.
A report last month by Reuters said Sen. Joni Ernst, Iowa Republican, is spearheading a bipartisan bill to create a $150 million Iranian sanction enforcement fund for Homeland Security Investigations. The bill is co-led by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connectictut Democrat.
The Homeland investigative office has conducted probes that led to the seizure of two cargoes of Iranian oil since its enforcement program was activated in 2019, according to Reuters. The news service reported that such actions come with high upfront costs, which have not always been fully available.
• Guy Taylor can be reached at gtaylor@washingtontimes.com.