The U.S. government has linked high-quality satellite imagery provided by Chinese entities to an Iranian ballistic missile strike that killed three U.S. soldiers in July at a military base in Jordan.
According to a report by The Wall Street Journal, the intelligence findings come after months of warnings by the Trump administration to Beijing regarding Chinese firms supplying targeting data to Tehran.
However, President Donald Trump has dismissed the link. “You know, when they say that China spies on us, I say you’re right, and we spy on them too,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he returned from a visit to Ireland. “That’s what we do. They basically do what we do,” Trump said.
Trump also refused to answer questions about whether he would raise the incident with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is expected to visit the White House on Sept. 24. Beijing has not yet confirmed that the meeting will take place. On Sunday, Trump reiterated his belief that he has a good relationship with Xi.
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“I think he’s behaved reasonably well, and we behave reasonably well,” Trump said.
The Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. officials said that when they questioned their Chinese counterparts regarding the imagery linked to the July 17 attack, they demanded proof. The officials claimed that China continues to reject Washington’s concerns and denies that any Chinese companies are involved in the activity.
The Chinese Embassy in the U.S. clarified that the help Beijing provides Tehran is in compliance with international law and that critics were “maliciously linking and smearing other countries” by taking advantage of the conflict.
During the attack on July 17, Iranian missiles struck the sleeping quarters of American troops at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in northeastern Jordan. U.S. officials said that the strike killed three soldiers, wounded four others who required medical evacuation, and targeted both manned and unmanned aircraft stationed at the base.
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In May, the U.S. sanctioned three Chinese companies, Mizart Vision, Earth Eye and Chang Guang, saying that supplying satellite imagery to Iran “threatens American and partner personnel.” Reports say that Trump administration officials have been downplaying China’s actions because Trump wants to maintain good relations with the country and its leader, Xi Jinping.
According to experts and former officials cited by The Wall Street Journal, the imagery likely represented one component of Iran’s broader intelligence operation. U.S. officials are also increasingly concerned that China or Russia could be providing Iran with targeting intelligence or high-resolution satellite imagery to track U.S. naval assets in the Middle East.