China upholding Iranian regime with oil purchases

Chinese purchases of Iranian oil have steadily increased since President Biden arrived in office, with Beijing‘s blatant flouting of U.S. sanctions on the Islamic republic providing an economic lifeline to hard-liners in Tehran. The White House has come under increasing criticism for tolerating Beijing‘s purchases, which analysts say amount to indirect Chinese support for Iran‘s nuclear weapons program, as well as Tehran‘s militant posturing and rejections of U.S. and European attempts to restore the 2015 Obama-era nuclear deal. Talks on reviving the nuclear deal have stalled but will resume Nov. 29 in Vienna, European Union officials announced this week. It is unclear whether Washington and Tehran can move closer to resuscitating the agreement. Covert Chinese support for Iran‘s economy could make hard-line Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi even less motivated to negotiate… (Excerpts from the Washington Times)