China calls reports it supplied weapons to Iran ‘baseless smears’

BEIJING – China on April 13 called reports that it had supplied or intended to supply weapons to Iran “baseless smears”, after several outlets quoted US intelligence sources to that effect. On April 12, US President Donald Trump threatened Beijing with a “staggering” new tariff of 50 per cent if it were to provide military assistance to Tehran. His comments came after US outlet CNN reported that US intelligence indicated China was preparing to deliver new air defence systems to Iran within the next few weeks, citing three people familiar with the assessments. Over the weekend, The New York Times…