US House committee calls for major crackdown on China’s alleged sanctioned oil imports | South China Morning Post

VirtualRichDream · 2026-04-01T09:26:14+00:00

Lawmakers have called for action against China's sanctioned oil imports, urging the Trump administration to blacklist port operators and close enforcement gaps. Despite easing sanctions on Russian and Iranian oil, reports show China's import of sanctioned oil surged, indicating ineffective Western sanctions.

VirtualRichDream

2026-04-01 09:26:14

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Lawmakers in the United States have urged the administration of US President Donald Trump to take action against China’s alleged sanctioned oil imports by blacklisting port operators and blocking complex settlement networks.

Despite Washington’s temporary easing of sanctions on Russian and Iranian oil to relieve price pressures from the US-Israeli war in Iran, the “House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party” has released a 41-page report calling for a wide-ranging crackdown on China’s access to sanctioned crude.

The committee – a bipartisan panel charged with investigating and developing policies to address challenges posed by Beijing – warned that current enforcement gaps had to be closed.

When faced with similar accusations in the past, China stressed that it consistently and firmly opposed unilateral sanctions that lack any basis in international law.

According to Kpler data cited in the report, published on Tuesday, China’s imports of sanctioned oil from Russia, Iran and Venezuela surged to 2.6 million barrels per day in 2025, accounting for about one-quarter of its total seaborne oil imports.

The report’s authors said Western sanctions had failed to cut off revenue from these countries and had instead concentrated discounted oil in China’s hands.

The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to South China Morning Post’s request for comment. The SCMP also faxed an inquiry to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which had not responded at the time of publication.

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