Is US ‘testing the waters’ with reported seizure of Chinese cargo bound for Iran?

The reported US seizure of a ship allegedly carrying Chinese-made dual-use components to Iran might signal Washington was “testing the waters” on reviving an old tactic to pressure Beijing’s ties with its adversaries, but such moves risked breaching international law, analysts said.

An American special operations team boarded a ship from China bound for Iran in the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka last month, The Wall Street Journal reported last Friday. Citing sources, it said the operation aimed to block Tehran’s import of components for its military build-up.

Operatives from the US Indo-Pacific Command, both special and conventional forces, allowed the vessel to proceed after confiscating the cargo, the report said.

The operation comes amid Pentagon efforts to curb Iran’s military build-up – including its nuclear and missile programmes – following US and Israeli air strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June.

According to the Journal report, Washington had been tracking the shipment, which included components with applications for both civilian and military use and potentially useful for Tehran’s conventional weapons development and missile programmes.

  

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