U.S. Sanctions Unreasonable, China Says

U.S. action against China for allegedly selling arms to Iran drew Chinese criticism Friday and also prompted an Iranian reassertion that its Chinese-made Silkworm missiles were captured from Iraq, not bought from China.

The American decision Thursday to suspend liberalization of high-technology exports to China in retaliation for the alleged sale of the Silkworm anti-ship missiles and other weapons to Iran “is not reasonable at all,” the official New China News Agency said, quoting unnamed “observers.”

“It is known to all that the current strain in the gulf area is caused by the sustaining and escalating Iran-Iraq War and further intensified by the military involvement of the big powers there,” the agency said. “In fact, the liberalization of high-tech export controls on China has nothing to do with the situation in the gulf area.”

Iran’s ambassador to China, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, said at a news conference that his country’s use of the Silkworm has nothing to do with China because the missiles were captured from its enemy Iraq.

“There is no connection in this regard with the Chinese government,” Boroujerdi said. “Therefore, we won’t face any limitation to use them (Silkworms) whenever the necessity arises.”

Boroujerdi also said foreign estimates of his country’s arsenal of U.S.-made Stinger anti-aircraft missiles are far too low.

The U.S. Defense Department has said that Iran may have half a dozen Stingers acquired from U.S.-backed guerrillas fighting the Soviet-backed government of Afghanistan.

‘Two-Fold That Number’

Boroujerdi said he had seen estimates in the foreign press that Iran has “16 or two-fold that number” of Stingers.

“But the number of Stinger missiles we have is much bigger than that,” he said. He declined to give a figure or say how the missiles were acquired.

U.S Embassy spokesman McKinney Russell said Friday that “the question of the Silkworms in the gulf” has been the subject of diplomatic discussions in both Beijing and Washington.

U.S. officials have said that China sold Iran the Silkworms that Iran is now using in the gulf area. Military analysts estimate that Iran has about 200 of the surface-to-surface, anti-ship missiles.

The Iranians are believed to have used two of the missiles last week in attacks against an American-owned supertanker, the Sungari, flying the Liberian flag of convenience, and a U.S.-flagged Kuwaiti tanker. Eighteen crew members, including the American captain, were injured in the attack on the Kuwaiti tanker, the Sea Isle City.

China has repeatedly denied selling the Silkworms to Iran.

“We have stated on many occasions that China does not sell arms or missiles to Iran,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Yuzhen said at a Wednesday press conference in response to a question about the Silkworms.

Chinese Premier Zhao Ziyang said last month, in an interview with NBC Television, that it is conceivable that the missiles could have reached Iran through the international weapons market.

“As you know, the international arms market is very complicated,” Zhao said. “If a country has the money and is ready to pay a high price, it will have no trouble in finding ways to acquire weapons.”

Zhao said he does not believe that Iran has Chinese-made missiles but “nevertheless, we have taken note of international reaction . . . and are making efforts to prevent weapons China will export from being transferred to Iran or Iraq through other channels.”