Blockade heightens US–China tensions
China called the U.S. naval blockade around the Strait of Hormuz "dangerous and irresponsible" and said only a "comprehensive ceasefire" would ease the crisis. ( ). U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accused China of hoarding oil during the Middle East war, even as reports say multiple ships — including a Chinese vessel — have passed through despite the blockade. ( ). Beijing has also issued new rules to investigate and punish foreign firms that shift supply chains away from Chinese suppliers under political pressure. (nytimes.com).
China and the United States have turned a Middle East shipping crisis into a direct clash over oil, trade and supply chains. (cnbc.com, nytimes.com) On April 14, China’s Foreign Ministry called the United States blockade around Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz “dangerous and irresponsible” and said only a “comprehensive ceasefire” could ease the crisis. The blockade began at 10 a.m. Eastern time on April 13 after talks between Washington and Tehran failed in Islamabad. (cnbc.com, nytimes.com) The waterway matters because about one-fifth of the world’s oil moved through the Strait of Hormuz before the war that began on February 28. China is the biggest buyer of Iranian crude, so any move that blocks Iranian exports hits Beijing’s energy supply directly. (cnbc.com, cnbc.com) Washington has framed the pressure campaign in economic terms as well as military ones. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on April 14 that China had been an “unreliable partner” by hoarding oil during the war, even as Beijing denied reports that it was supplying weapons to Iran. (reuters.com, cnbc.com) The blockade has also looked uneven in practice. Shipping data cited by Reuters showed the sanctioned tanker Rich Starry, owned by Shanghai Xuanrun Shipping, passed through the strait on April 14 carrying about 250,000 barrels of methanol. (reuters.com, newsweek.com) That transit exposed the narrow legal and military target of the operation. The United States said it was blocking ships entering or leaving Iranian ports, not every vessel using the strait, which left room for non-Iran-bound traffic to keep moving. (cnbc.com, theprint.in) Beijing widened the confrontation last week with new industrial and supply chain security rules that took effect immediately after Premier Li Qiang signed them on March 31. The regulations let Chinese authorities investigate foreign entities they say disrupted Chinese supply chains and impose measures including trade restrictions, investment limits and curbs on entry into China. (english.www.gov.cn, mee.gov.cn, nytimes.com) Those rules reach beyond shipping lanes in the Gulf. Multinational companies told The New York Times they feared the measures could punish executives or firms that move sourcing out of China under pressure from foreign governments. (nytimes.com, bloomberg.com) President Xi Jinping used similarly broad language on April 14, saying the international order was “crumbling into disarray” as he met Spain’s prime minister and an Abu Dhabi royal in Beijing. China has presented itself as backing talks and a ceasefire, while warning Washington not to interfere with Chinese trade and energy ties. (bloomberg.com, cnbc.com) For now, the fight is running on two tracks at once: United States warships at the mouth of the Gulf, and Chinese regulators tightening the cost of leaving China’s supply chains. (cnbc.com, english.www.gov.cn)
