President Trump said Friday that he does not believe Russia or China are providing weapons to Iran.
In a post on Truth Social, Mr. Trump said that while he was in Beijing in May, Chinese President Xi Jinping said he would not “under any circumstances” provide weapons to Iran, including arms from Chinese companies.
“Considering our relationship, I take him at his word and, besides, l am doing him very big favors, also,” the president wrote.
Mr. Trump said Russian President Vladimir Putin also said he would not sell weapons to Iran.
“He understands that I do not sell Weapons to Ukraine, but to NATO Countries. They pay full price, and how those Weapons are distributed, I have no idea,” the president said.
“Therefore, two major Countries that people speak of often in terms of Iran are, in my opinion, not participating,” Mr. Trump wrote, adding: “If they did, it would be very bad for them — Certainly not in their best interests.”
CBS News has reported that Russia and China have both supported Iran during the war, which was launched jointly by the U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28.
Multiple sources told CBS News in March that Russia was providing intelligence to Iran about U.S. military positions in the Middle East.
Analysts at the Defense Intelligence Agency, which is the Defense Department’s military intelligence arm, assessed soon after the start of the war that China was considering providing Iran with advanced radar systems, multiple sources familiar with the matter told CBS News at the time. Such technology would help Tehran better detect and track incoming threats, such as low-flying drones and cruise missiles.
U.S. intelligence assessments also indicated that China had previously provided Tehran with satellite imagery, which the theocratic Islamic regime used during the war, two U.S. officials familiar with the matter said in April.
The Financial Times reported in April that Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had used a spy satellite it purchased from Earth Eye Co., a Chinese company, to target U.S. military bases in the Middle East.