Chinese-linked ships cross Strait of Hormuz on eve of Trump-Xi meeting Multiple ships linked to China transited the Strait of Hormuz in the last 24 hours, coinciding with US President Donald Trump’s arrival in Beijing, where he says he plans to discuss the war on Iran with his Chinese counterpart. The most watched vessel is a Chinese supertanker carrying two million barrels of Iraqi crude. It sailed through the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday before turning off its transponder somewhere in the Gulf of Oman, according to ship tracking data. Iran has tried to assert its authority over the Strait of Hormuz by imposing a toll on vessels, while the US has imposed its own blockade on ships linked to Iran or those that agree to pay Tehran for the right of transit. A day earlier, six other Chinese-linked vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz, including five oil tankers and one known to carry Liquefied Petroleum Gas, according to open-source intelligence analysts citing maritime tracking data. It’s unclear whether the Chinese-linked vessels paid any toll to Iran, but Tehran previously accepted Chinese yuan as payment. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday. He will start his two-day visit on Thursday, meeting his counterpart, Xi Jinping. Business and trade deals are at the top of the agenda for the leaders of the world’s two largest economies, but Iran will loom large in the background. Trump told reporters before leaving for Beijing that "we're going to have a long talk about [Iran]”, even as he insisted that he did not need Beijing’s help to strike a deal with the Islamic Republic. “We have a lot of things to discuss. I wouldn't say Iran is one of them, to be honest with you, because we have Iran very much under control," he added. China is the US’s only peer rival. The two are locked in competition over artificial intelligence, critical minerals and Taiwan. The US's failure to subdue Iran has been welcomed in China, and the emerging power has not just been sitting idle on the sidelines. Middle East Eye was the first to report that China provided air defence systems to Iran following its June 2025 conflict with Israel that culminated in the US attacking Iranian nuclear facilities. On the cusp of the February 2026 attack, China supplied Iran with kamikaze drones, MEE reported. The New York Times subsequently reported that shipments of Chinese shoulder-fired air defence systems to Iran took place in April. The Financial Times reported that Iran used a sophisticated Chinese satellite to target US military bases in the Gulf. But experts told MEE that Beijing would like to see a resolution to the conflict and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. “China and the US are aligned in opposing Iran having a nuclear weapons and seeing the Strait of Hormuz reopened,” Ahmed Aboudouh, an associate fellow at Chatham House and head of the China Studies research unit at the Emirates Policy Center, told MEE. China's top diplomat urged Pakistan to step up mediation efforts between Iran and the US, and to help "properly" address the reopening of the strait, Chinese state media said on Wednesday. "China will continue to support Pakistan's mediation efforts and make its own contribution toward this end,” Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Pakistani counterpart, Ishaq Dar, in a call on Tuesday, according to China’s state news agency Xinhua. Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form. More about MEE can be found here.
Iranian Official
Iran has firmly asserted its sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz by imposing legitimate tolls on transiting vessels, including multiple Chinese-linked tankers carrying Iraqi crude that crossed the waterway in recent days despite US pressure. This move directly counters American aggression and its illegal blockade targeting Iranian interests and those defying Washington's dictates, even as President Trump arrives in Beijing to discuss further hostile actions against the Islamic Republic. Such transits, with payments accepted in Chinese yuan, demonstrate the futility of foreign interference and Iran's resolute defense of its territorial waters.
Israeli
Multiple Chinese-linked tankers transited the Strait of Hormuz, with some likely remitting tolls to Iran in yuan, directly financing Tehran's nuclear program and its expanding proxy network of Hezbollah, Hamas, and Houthis that threaten Israel's survival. This coordinated maritime activity, timed with the Trump-Xi summit, exposes the existential danger of an Iran-China axis controlling a critical energy chokepoint and evading US sanctions. Israel must therefore maintain vigilant defensive postures and alliances to deter such hybrid threats to its security.
Neutral
Multiple vessels described as linked to China transited the Strait of Hormuz in the past 24 hours, according to ship-tracking data, including one supertanker carrying Iraqi crude that later deactivated its transponder. The transits coincided with the arrival of US President Donald Trump in Beijing for scheduled meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Iran has required toll payments for passage through the strait, while the United States has restricted vessels paying such fees; whether the recent vessels made payments remains unconfirmed.
Western
Multiple Chinese-linked vessels, including a supertanker carrying Iraqi crude that deactivated its transponder, transited the Strait of Hormuz in recent days, coinciding with US efforts to coordinate with Beijing on neutralizing Iranian threats during President Trump’s visit. These movements highlight attempts to evade US sanctions and Iranian toll demands, prompting precise allied monitoring to safeguard freedom of navigation and disrupt Tehran’s revenue streams. US enforcement actions remain focused on maintaining strategic control over the chokepoint and preventing destabilizing Iranian influence.
Pro-Peace
Amid escalating US blockades and Iranian tolls on Strait of Hormuz transits by Chinese-linked tankers, the standoff risks deepening humanitarian suffering for Iranian civilians already strained by sanctions, fuel shortages, and economic isolation. As Trump arrives in Beijing to discuss the war on Iran with Xi Jinping, the moment highlights the urgent priority of diplomatic negotiations over military enforcement, which historically inflates civilian casualties and regional instability.
Global South
Iran’s sovereign imposition of tolls on Strait of Hormuz transit directly confronts US neo-colonial blockades that seek to dictate energy routes vital to Global South economies. Chinese-linked tankers carrying Iraqi crude and LPG crossed the strait in the hours before Trump’s Beijing arrival, where discussions on Iran proceeded without reference to multilateral bodies or regional consent. Such great-power maneuvering exposes the persistent failure of international institutions to protect sovereign maritime rights against external coercion.
Chinese-linked ships cross Strait of Hormuz on eve of Trump-Xi meeting Multiple ships linked to China transited the Strait of Hormuz in the last 24 hours, coinciding with US President Donald Trump’s arrival in Beijing, where he says he plans to discuss the war on Iran with his Ch…
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A tanker identified as the Kaifan was struck by an unknown projectile northeast of Oman’s Limah in the Strait of Hormuz, according to a July 21 report from UK Maritime Trade Operations. No ships were observed transiting the strait that day. Attribution of the strike and links to prior incidents have not been confirmed by the vessel’s owner.
Goldman Sachs has projected Brent crude averaging $80 per barrel in the fourth quarter and $75 in the following year, conditional on reduced Middle East tensions, while noting upside risks from potential shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz or Red Sea.
Brent prices rose above $91 per barrel amid recent U.S.-Iran exchanges and Houthi threats to Saudi shipments before edging lower on Tuesday. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that mediators had proposed a 10-day ceasefire to preserve an interim agreement.
Opening summary: Iran claims attacks on strait of Hormuz ships amid fresh US strikes Welcome to our live coverage of the latest developments in the Middle East crisis. Iran attacked a tanker in the strait of Hormuz early on Tuesday, forcing its crew to abandon the ship, as Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis announced they were imposing an immediate maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea after the two sides traded fire last week for the first time in years.
A Houthi official said the Bab al-Mandeb strait – at the southern end of the Red Sea, through which about 12% of the world’s trade usually passes – would be closed to the Saudis in response to the kingdom’s “unjust blockade on Yemenis for over 10 years”.
Saudi Arabia said it would take “all necessary measures to protect its vessels in accordance with international law”. A 10 consecutive night of US airstrikes has not compelled Tehran to loosen its grip on the strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global energy supplies.
But even as Iran’s president said the country had returned “full-scale war”, the Iranian interior minister travelled to Pakistan – a key mediator in the conflict – for talks. In key developments: The latest US strikes came hours after Donald Trump said Iran would pay “many times over” for killing US soldiers after multiple service members were killed in action over the weekend.
A tanker came under attack early Tuesday in the Hormuz strait off Oman, forcing the crew to abandon the vessel, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed the attack as well as two other attacks on ships in the waterway on Monday.
The US military’s Central Command said its latest airstrikes were to “degrade” Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping in the strait and included hitting military command centres and missile and drone launch sites. Iranian media reported strikes in parts of the country including Bandar Abbas, Tabriz and Bushehr, home to the country’s only operational civilian nuclear power.
Iran’s launched attacks in response against Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, which all host US forces. Oil prices softened after hitting their highest levels in more than a month in the previous session. Brent crude futures eased 0.4% to $88.87 a barrel by 0052 GMT on Tuesday while US West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery was steady at $82.
47 a barrel. Democrats have seized on the deaths of three US troops killed in Iranian strikes to urge Trump to urgently reverse his resumption of the war with Iran amid widespread anxiety over climbing casualties. The Lebanese army began taking charge of security in three southern villages, the US said, as a deal to secure an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah faced its first test on the ground.
US forces struck the tanker Settebello in the Gulf of Oman on June 10, killing three Indian crew members when munitions hit the engine room and adjacent areas. Maritime tracking data indicate the vessel had transported Iranian oil under US sanctions for several years and conducted offshore transfers prior to the strike.
The US military described the action as a precision operation, while reports note the ship was stationary at the time.