Chinese Intelligence Is Sharpening Iran’s Strikes on US Targets

Intelligence supplied by Chinese groups has helped Iran strike U.S. military sites more precisely, according to American intelligence assessments described to CNN by four sources.

Chinese support also helped Iran track ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Satellite imagery was critical to an Iranian strike on a U.S. base in Jordan in July that killed three American service members, the sources said.

U.S. officials assessed that the strike showed a degree of precision Iran could not otherwise have achieved.

The assessments do not establish whether Beijing directed the support or allowed Chinese groups to provide it.

Officials also cited Russian assistance and Iran’s growing combat experience as contributors to its improved performance.

Tracking Ships in Hormuz

Chinese geospatial data has improved Iran’s ability to follow vessels through the strait, according to one official.

Two other sources said it has helped Iranian forces time launches of heat-seeking drones that cannot be redirected once airborne.

U.S. officials described attacks on military escorts and commercial shipping in which Iran sends large numbers of drones toward vessels at selected points in the waterway.

Better information about a ship’s position can make that tactic more effective, even when the drones themselves are relatively simple.

The scale of the threat was evident during one recent escort operation, according to an official cited by CNN.

U.S. forces intercepted more than a dozen Iranian missiles and nearly 20 drones while striking about 60 targets around the strait.

Chinese and Russian technical assistance has also helped Iran improve missile and drone guidance systems, the sources said.

One source described outside intelligence as especially consequential in the Jordan attack: “Getting reps on the battlefield helps, but getting a helping hand helps a lot too.”

Questions Over Beijing’s Role

Washington sanctioned three Chinese satellite companies in May, saying they had supplied imagery that enabled Iranian strikes against U.S. forces in the Middle East.

Yet officials told CNN they could not precisely measure the full scope of Chinese assistance.

China has rejected allegations that it is exploiting the conflict.

“China always strictly fulfills its due international obligations. We oppose exploiting the conflict to throw mud at China,” foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said.

The Trump administration has avoided publicly accusing the Chinese government of directing the reported support.

After the Jordan attack, Secretary of State Marco Rubio declined to address the targeting allegation directly and said China had been cooperative in some respects, including its stated opposition to Iranian tolls on shipping through Hormuz.

Iran’s strikes have forced changes in U.S. deployments across the region.

A Pentagon inspector general report cited by CNN said attacks damaged or destroyed hundreds of structures at U.S. bases during the war’s first months, prompting U.S. Central Command to move personnel, equipment and supplies.