United States President, Donald Trump, has dismissed reports that Chinese entities provided Iran with satellite imagery of a US military base in Jordan before and after an Iranian missile attack that killed three American soldiers.
Trump made the remarks on Sunday while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, a day after The Wall Street Journal reported that Beijing had shared intelligence with Tehran.
“You know, when they say that China spies on us, I say you’re right, and we spy on them too,” Trump said.
“That’s what we do. They basically do what we do,” he added, playing down concerns over the alleged intelligence-sharing ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s planned visit to the White House on September 24.
Iran launched missile strikes on the Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan on July 17.
The facility hosts US military personnel, and the attack resulted in the deaths of three US Army soldiers.
According to the Journal, unnamed American officials did not identify the Chinese entities allegedly involved in supplying the satellite imagery and did not accuse the Chinese government of directly participating in the transfer.
The report said Chinese officials demanded evidence of the alleged transfer when questioned by US officials and denied that Chinese companies had supplied Tehran with satellite images.
Washington has previously warned Beijing against supplying weapons to Iran. In May, the US sanctioned three China-based satellite companies over allegations that they had supported Iran’s military operations.
China remains a major economic partner of Iran, purchasing a significant portion of its oil exports while also providing diplomatic backing to Tehran.
Despite the latest report, Trump described his relationship with Xi positively, saying, “he’s behaved reasonably well, and we behave reasonably well.”
Asked whether he would permit Chinese-made cars to be sold in the United States, Trump said, “I haven’t. I’m the one that kept them out. The tariffs kept them out.”
