- A Financial Times report says Iran acquired a Chinese spy satellite in 2024.
- Leaked documents suggest the IRGC uses satellites to monitor US sites.
- Satellite images reportedly captured before and after the attacks on the bases.
China has rejected a Financial times report as “made up,” rejecting claims that Beijing provided covert satellite support to Iran, allowing it to attack US military bases across the Middle East during the ongoing conflict.
The report claims that Iran secretly acquired a Chinese-made spy satellite in late 2024, which it has used to monitor and attack US military facilities across the region.
The TEE-01B satellite, built and launched by Chinese company Earth Eye Co, was acquired by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force after it was launched into space from China, the report said, citing leaked Iranian military documents.
Iranian military commanders ordered the satellite to monitor major US military sites, the newspaper said, citing lists of time-stamped coordinates, satellite images and orbital analysis. The images were taken in March before and after the drone and missile attacks on those locations, the Financial times saying.
As part of the deal, the IRGC received access to commercial ground stations operated by Emposat, a Beijing-based satellite monitoring and data services provider with a network spanning Asia, Latin America and other regions, according to the report.
Rejecting the claims, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said Reuters: “Recently, some forces have been interested in fabricating rumors and maliciously associating them with China.”
“China firmly opposes this kind of practice driven by ulterior motives,” the statement said.
Reuters The report could not be verified.
The White House, CIA and Pentagon did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comments. Earth Eye Co and Emposat also did not immediately respond to Reuters queries.
The report said the White House had no comment on the relationship between Emposat and the IRGC, but a spokesperson referred to comments US President Donald Trump made over the weekend when he warned that China would face “big problems” if it provided Iran with air defense systems.
When asked about the matter, the Chinese embassy in Washington told the newspaper: “We firmly oppose relevant parties spreading speculative and insinuating disinformation against China.”
The satellite captured images of Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia on March 13, 14 and 15, according to the report.
On March 14, Trump confirmed that American planes at the base had been hit.
According to the report, the satellite also monitored the Muwaffaq Salti air base in Jordan and locations near the US Fifth Fleet naval base in Manama, Bahrain, and the airport in Erbil, Iraq, around the time of attacks claimed by the IRGC against facilities in those areas.
