Has China, and secondarily Russia, thrown a monkey wrench into U.S. intentions for military strikes on Iran? If so, and if the Pentagon knows that it’s so, then that could be adding to Donald Trump’s frustrations that have so far held him back from issuing the attack order.
According to reports which have emerged over the past few days, China has deployed capabilities to Iranian and nearby waters that could prove to be complicating factors in U.S. plans. Those capabilities include a naval detachment led by a Type 055 destroyer called the Dalian, a smaller Type 52D destroyer, and the electronic reconnaissance ship Liaowang-1, which was commissioned into the PLA Navy in 2024.
According to a Russian publication called Nasha Versiya, Iran has only two trump cards (no pun intended) in a military confrontation with the United States: its missile arsenal and its threat to close the Strait of Hormuz. But Iran also has alliances with China and Russia, of which China is the more important. “And this is understandable. As with Venezuela, America’s main geopolitical blow is not against Moscow (although in certain cases it is presented as such), but against Beijing,” Nasha Versiya says. “And if the U.S. succeeds in doing what it is currently threatening the Iranian leadership with, Beijing will suffer not only a blow to its reputation, but also serious economic losses. Iran is China’s second-largest oil supplier and a strategic hub in the Belt and Road Initiative.”
Nasha Versiya then notes that cargo shipments both by air and by ship have been arriving in Iran over many weeks, including air defense systems from Russia and thousands of tons of sodium perchlorate, a key ingredient for making rocket fuel, from China.
Secondly, is the upcoming joint Iran-Russia-China “Maritime Security Belt” naval exercise set to kickoff on March 11 in the Strait of Hormuz-Gulf of Oman area. Nasha Versiya then calls attention to the capabilities of the Chinese naval detachment. The 13,000-ton Type 055 destroyers, with 112 vertical launch cells and advanced radar and electronic warfare systems, are more powerful than the smaller—and aging—U.S. Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruisers. “Such a ship is fully capable of creating an anti-access and area denial zone—in Western armies, this is referred to as A2/AD (anti-access and area denial). In simple terms, this is a zone where all enemy weapons are blocked. But that wasn’t the main news,” Nasha Versiya reports.
The main news is about the Liaowang-1, commissioned into the PLA Navy in 2024. This ship, “in addition to monitoring space objects, is equipped with specialized electronic reconnaissance equipment. According to foreign media, this ship’s equipment features reliable detection of American stealth aircraft such as the F-35A Lightning II and the ability to track up to 1,000 airborne targets at a range of 400 to 600 km.” The Liaowang-1, Nasha Versiya says, is designed to counter America’s air armada of airborne reconnaissance and target acquisition systems—E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft, RC-135W Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft, P-8 Poseidon, and RQ-4 Global Hawk strategic unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, along with its naval counterpart, the MQ-4C Triton, without which the U.S. military cannot run a military campaign.
According to a report in Military Watch Magazine, which is cited in the Versiya report, “these reported deployments have fueled speculation that the Liaowang-1 and accompanying destroyers may be in the region to monitor the movements of U.S. Navy and other Western warships, allowing intelligence to be passed on to Iran. The importance of Iran to Chinese security interests makes this highly possible. If confirmed, this would have the potential to help deter a Western attack, removing the element of surprise from strikes launched and likely enabling Iranian forces to conduct more effective retaliation if the U.S. proceeds to initiate hostilities.”
