After China's two oil tankers were denied passage, countries around the world awaited Beijing's response—then Iran suddenly changed its mind!
On the morning of March 31, the "Zhonghai Beijinyang" and "Zhonghai Yinduyang," which had been stranded in the Persian Gulf for over a month, successfully passed through the Strait of Hormuz. This marked the first time since the escalation of conflict at the end of February that large Chinese vessels had traversed this global energy chokepoint.
Yet just days earlier, the situation was completely different. On March 27, these two ultra-large container ships, belonging to COSCO Shipping Group, were directly turned back while attempting to exit the Persian Gulf, near Iranian waters.
At the time, Iran stated that the vessels' destinations—such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia—were considered "unfriendly" Gulf states, violating their new navigation regulations. The incident led many observers to believe even China could not be exempt from Iran’s “wartime rules.”
So why did Iran change its stance so quickly? Iran’s shift in attitude was not impulsive but rooted in practical calculations of interest. China is Iran’s largest buyer of crude oil and a crucial economic partner. Alienating China would mean risking Iran’s most important external trading partner.
As Diao Ge puts it, even the fiercely independent Revolutionary Guard needs to purchase spare parts and maintain basic technological supplies. Today, Tehran cannot find any other country globally that can both supply and dare to supply such goods. Thus, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps promptly corrected its mistake.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1861160340297728/
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