Washington imposes sanctions on an independent refinery in China for refining Iranian oil

The United States announced Wednesday that it had imposed sanctions on an independent refinery in China for illegally refining Iranian oil, a new step in US President Donald Trump’s maximum pressure strategy against Iran.

The US State Department said it imposed sanctions on Shandong Xingxing Chemical Company for purchasing more than $1 billion in Iranian oil.

The US government is seeking to combat illegal oil exports from Iran.

In parallel, Washington announced sanctions on several companies and vessels accused of transporting Iranian oil to China as part of the “ghost fleet” the Islamic Republic is accused of exploiting.

“As long as Iran seeks oil revenue to fund its destabilizing activities, the United States will hold Iran and its partners accountable,” State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said in a statement.

This is the second time the United States has imposed sanctions on an independent refinery in China, after imposing similar sanctions on Lucking Petrochemical Company, also based in Shandong Province, eastern China.

The move drew strong condemnation from Beijing, which accused the Trump administration of seeking to undermine economic and trade cooperation between Iran and China.

The announcement of these sanctions comes after International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi warned on Wednesday that Iran is not far from developing a nuclear bomb, ahead of his arrival in Tehran for talks.

Western countries, including the United States, have long suspected that Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran has consistently denied, insisting that its program is for peaceful civilian purposes.