Iran used Chinese spy satellite to attack US bases in Gulf: Report
Iran used a Chinese spy satellite to target US bases in the Middle East for missile and drone strikes, according to a report by The Financial Times published on Wednesday.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Aerospace Force acquired the sophisticated TEE-01B spy satellite from China in late 2024, agreeing to pay roughly $36.6m for the system, the report said. The deal was priced in renminbi.
Time-stamped coordinate lists, satellite imagery and orbital analysis showed that Iranian commanders used the satellite to monitor key US military sites in March before and after those facilities were targeted by Iran.
The report said that the satellite was used to monitor US military activity at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, locations near the US Fifth Fleet naval base in Manama, Bahrain, and Erbil airport in Iraq.
Notably, Prince Sultan Air Base was surveilled on 13, 14 and 15 March according to logs obtained by the FT. On 15 March, US President Donald Trump confirmed reports that US warplanes at the base had been hit.
Middle East Eye later reported that around this time, the US lobbied Saudi Arabia to make King Fahd Air Base in the kingdom’s western province of Taif available to the US.
US and Arab officials told MEE that the US might have felt the need to pull back from the Gulf. Riyadh complied with the request.
But the Chinese satellite gave Iran the ability to monitor US activity well beyond Taif, including the Camp Lemonnier US military base in Djibouti. Other areas surveilled included Camp Buehring and Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait, and Duqm International Airport in Oman.
Satellite gave Iran high-tech advantage
The US’s military advantage over its foes rests largely on advanced intelligence and technology. For example, US satellites and targeting information have helped Ukraine effectively bomb Russia.
The TEE-01B is able to capture images at half-metre resolution, which is comparable to that of commercially available western satellites. The IRGC's most advanced military satellite, previously the Noor-3, captured images at about five-metre resolution.
Earth Eye, the company that built the satellite, is private but advertises its ties to Chinese universities known to work with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
Emposat, the Chinese company that provides the software to operate the satellite and ground infrastructure, is linked to the People’s Liberation Army Aerospace Force, according to a report by the US Congress.
The use of a Chinese satellite may help explain how Iran was able to lodge such precision strikes on US military bases in the Gulf.
The FT story builds on a series of reports that Beijing has played a quiet role in bolstering Iran against the US.
What support has China given Iran
MEE reported in July 2025 that China has provided Iran with surface-to-air missile systems as it sought to rebuild its defences damaged by the US and Israel in the wake of the 12-day war.
MEE then revealed Iran sent Kamikaze drones to the Islamic Republic in addition to other small “offensive” weapons just before the US and Israel attacked in February.
The New York Times reported this week that China may have delivered man-portable air defence systems, or Manpads, to Iran amid the war.
China has denied reports that it is providing Iran with military gear.
US President Donald Trump threatened a 50 percent tariff on Iran over the reports. He told Fox News in an interview broadcast on Wednesday that Chinese leader Xi Jinping said he was not arming Iran.
Trump was scheduled to travel to Beijing in March to meet Xi, but the trip was pushed back to May amid the war. Trump downplayed any tension between the two sides in a post on X, saying his counterpart would give him “a big, fat hug” when he arrives.
This article was sourced from Middle East Eye.
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