Beijing remains a key ally of Tehran but has not signalled any military backing in the conflict sparked by US-Israeli strikes.
China’s foreign ministry on Friday accused media outlets of spreading “false information” after a report claimed the country’s leading semiconductor company had supplied chipmaking equipment to Iran.
The report, citing two unnamed senior officials from the administration of Donald Trump, alleged that contract chipmaker Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation began sending the tools to Iran about a year ago.
According to the report, a US official said there was “no reason to believe that any of this has stopped.”
China remains a key partner of Iran but has not announced any military support for Tehran in the conflict triggered by US-Israeli strikes on February 28, instead repeatedly calling for a ceasefire.
The chipmaker, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC), did not respond to a request for comment on Friday.
At a regular news briefing in Beijing, foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said he was “not familiar with the situation” when asked about the report.
“What I can say is that recently, some media outlets have been eager to publish news that appears accurate but is actually false,” Lin said.
He added that, after verification, such reports were found to be “all false information,” without providing further details.
China has condemned the US-Israeli killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei but has also stated that it “does not support” Tehran’s strikes on Gulf states hosting US military bases.
Beijing’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, told his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi in a phone call this week that he hoped “all parties can seize every opportunity and window for peace and initiate the peace talks process.”
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