Explained: Why China is not supporting Iran militarily

As Iran comes under sustained strikes from the United States and Israel, two of its closest strategic partners - Russia and China - have not offered any military support.

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Moscow, engaged in its war in Ukraine, has condemned the attacks and signalled diplomatic backing for Tehran. Beijing has also criticised the strikes. But neither has moved to provide military assistance, despite Iran's long-standing ties with Moscow and Beijing.

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Russia described the US-Israeli action as "unprovoked aggression" and stressed its readiness to support Iran diplomatically. China adopted a similar diplomatic tone.

In a phone call with his Russian counterpart on Sunday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi condemned the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. He said it was "unacceptable for the US and Israel to launch attacks against Iran... still less to blatantly assassinate a leader of a sovereign country and instigate regime change."

Beijing joined Moscow in calling for an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting. Yet beyond diplomatic condemnation, China has not provided material or military support. 

China: Iran's strategic partner, but not ally

China is Iran's largest oil buyer. It purchases about 80% of Iran's shipped oil, accounting for nearly 14% of Beijing's imports. The two countries describe themselves as comprehensive strategic partners and signed a 25-year strategic agreement in 2021.

Daniel R. Russel, former United States Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, said on Monday that China does not treat Iran as an ally in the traditional sense. "China views Iran as an asset, not an ally," Russel said as per The Wall Street Journal.

Russel added that the current crisis allows Chinese President Xi Jinping to shape the narrative against Washington, portraying the United States as "reckless, destabilising and hypocritical."

Gabriel Wildau, Managing Director specialising in China at advisory firm Teneo, told CNBC that preserving détente with the US remains a strategic priority for China's leadership.

Ahmed Aboudouh, a fellow at London-based policy think tank Chatham House, argues that China's restraint reflects a long-standing policy. In his analysis, he says Beijing criticised the US and Israel's strikes on Iran during the 12-day war in 2025 but did not provide material support to Tehran. 

Despite being a comprehensive strategic partner to Iran, he states, Beijing also backed UN-led economic sanctions against Iran before the 2015 nuclear deal and has since procrastinated on injecting investment into the Iranian economy.

According to a security analyst, Chinese officials publicly oppose Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons. He says Beijing is concerned that a nuclear Iran may trigger a regional war. "Such a war would risk the blocking of vital shipping lanes and obstruct China's oil imports from the Gulf," he writes. "It could also lead to Iran targeting the Gulf states, where China's commercial interests far outweigh its ties with Tehran."

Aboudouh adds that a nuclear-armed Iran could alter regional dynamics in ways that run counter to China's broader interests. He writes that by obtaining nuclear weapons, Iran would shift the balance of power in its favour and set a new deterrence mechanism that may restrain any future US or Israeli military actions. 

"This may destabilise the Middle East for generations by triggering a race towards nuclear weapons. More broadly, it could also encourage China's regional rivals, such as Japan, South Korea and Australia, to also seek to become nuclear powers as a means of deterring Beijing's assertiveness."

Aboudouh argues that China sees Iran's weakened position as both a risk and a strategic opening. He says Beijing doesn't want to see a total regime collapse, replaced by a Western-aligned government. "At the same time, Beijing can capitalise on Iran's weakness to increase the regime's dependence on China."