ALBAWABA - Last month, a secret U.S. military operation in the Indian Ocean stopped a shipment from China that was on its way to Iran. This is part of Washington's efforts to stop Tehran from secretly buying weapons.
The Wall Street Journal was the first to report the mission, and American officials confirmed it. It involved U.S. special forces boarding a ship hundreds of miles off the coast of Sri Lanka and taking parts that were thought to have possible military uses.
Officials who know about the operation say that the United States had been keeping an eye on the shipment for weeks before the raid. The cargo was destroyed after the dual-use materials, which could be used in Iran's conventional weapons systems, were taken. The ship was then allowed to continue on its way. This is the first time in a long time that the U.S. has stopped Chinese-made goods from going to Iran.
There was a lot of tension before the raid because of a 12-day standoff in June when the US and Israel allegedly attacked Iranian nuclear and missile sites. American intelligence officials say that since then, Iran has stepped up its efforts to rebuild its stockpile of ballistic missiles, which makes people worry that there will be more conflict in the region. Talks between Washington and Tehran about nuclear weapons are still stalled.
The operation also fits with the renewed pressure on Iran from the rest of the world after the United Nations reinstated a global arms embargo earlier this year. U.S. agencies are paying more attention to Chinese exports that might help Iran develop missiles, such as precision technologies that make missiles work better.
Members of Congress in the U.S. have called for more investigation into the large amounts of chemical precursors that were recently sent from China to Iran. They wrote to Congress to say that Beijing seems "undeterred and increasingly emboldened" in helping Tehran's military programs.
China, on the other hand, has strong economic and diplomatic ties with Iran, keeps buying Iranian oil, and doesn't think the U.S. sanctions are right.
The high-stakes interception shows that Washington is getting more worried about secret military cooperation between China and Iran. It also shows that the US is trying to limit Iran's weapons capabilities before they start a new round of regional violence.
