Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Amid the war between the United States (US)\nand Iran, China is beginning to play an important role through its\nsatellite imagery. Although its support for Iran since the outbreak of\nOperation \u201cEpic Fury\u201d on 28 February has appeared very cautious,\nBeijing\u2019s contributions from outer space are starting to attract\nattention.<\/p>\n
Openly, Beijing has indeed not provided significant, conspicuous\nassistance, either economically, diplomatically, or militarily. However,\nbehind that, there is another, more indirect contribution that could be\neven more important, namely from outer space.<\/p>\n
On 2 March 2026, a spokesperson for China\u2019s Ministry of Foreign\nAffairs stated that the attacks by the United States and Israel violated\ninternational law. At the same time, Chinese ships carrying sodium\nperchlorate, a material potentially used in missile propellant, are\nbelieved to have arrived in Iran earlier this month.<\/p>\n
US intelligence has also reportedly warned that China is preparing to\nship shoulder-fired rockets, a type of weapon that can be used to shoot\ndown low-flying US helicopters or aircraft.<\/p>\n
Nevertheless, the most tangible form of support from China comes\nthrough satellite imagery.<\/p>\n
Chinese Satellite Images Flood Social Media as Western Access\nTightens<\/p>\n
Social media has recently been filled with images of the Middle East\ntaken by Chinese satellites and released by companies from the Bamboo\nCurtain country. This phenomenon has emerged just as US-based satellite\ncompanies are tightening access under pressure from the Donald Trump\nadministration, leaving journalists, researchers, and activists without\none of their key sources of open-source intelligence.<\/p>\n
The proliferation of images from China demonstrates that the\ncountry\u2019s capabilities in satellite observation are developing very\nrapidly, both in terms of coverage and sophistication.<\/p>\n
This situation also marks the end of Western dominance over the most\nadvanced satellite imagery from outer space. However, for analysts\nrelying on open sources, the presence of Chinese imagery is not just a\nlifeline but also a warning.<\/p>\n
The Iran war has become a massive free advertising opportunity for\nChinese satellite companies.<\/p>\n
Bill Greer, a geospatial analyst and one of the founders of\nCommonspace, a non-profit satellite service, believes that the\nrestrictions from the Trump government are actually benefiting US\ncompetitors, when it didn\u2019t need to happen.<\/p>\n
According to him, the US is essentially harming its own commercial\nsatellite industry in order to limit access, even though adversaries can\nstill obtain data through other systems.<\/p>\n
In recent weeks, evidence of cooperation between Chinese satellite\ncompanies and Iran has also increased. China Siwei, which is part of the\nstate-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, is known\nto have taken high-resolution photos of US and allied military\nlocations.<\/p>\n
The Financial Times also reported that Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guard has\npurchased a Chinese satellite. That satellite is suspected to be the\nsource of some of the images aired by Iranian state media, including\nphotos showing the results of their attacks that caused severe\ndamage.<\/p>\n
China\u2019s Satellite Fleet Grows Larger and Sharper<\/p>\n
The abundance of images from China is inseparable from the rapid\ngrowth of that country\u2019s satellite constellation.<\/p>\n
Throughout 2025 alone, China launched more than 120 satellites\nmonitoring Earth\u2019s surface, including satellites using radar, radio\nwaves, and cameras. With that addition, the total number of China\u2019s\nEarth-observation satellites in orbit now exceeds 640 units, a figure\nsecond only to the US.<\/p>\n
In the US, almost all commercial satellite companies depend on\nselling images to the military and intelligence agencies. But in China,\nthe line between private companies and the state is considered much\nblurrier.<\/p>\n
The largest constellation in the country is Jilin-1, which has more\nthan 100 satellites and is operated by Chang Guang Satellite Technology\n(CGST), a company said to have close ties to the People\u2019s Liberation\nArmy (PLA).<\/p>\n
This company\u2019s targets are very ambitious, namely to be able to image\nany point on Earth every 10 minutes.<\/p>\n
In the race to lead in Earth observation, Chinese and US commercial\nsatellites are now considered to be running almost neck and neck.\nSiwei\u2019s Superview Neo-1 satellite is said to be capable of producing\nimages as sharp as Vantor, one of the leading US satellite\ncompanies.<\/p>\n
Aravind Ravichandran, head of market intelligence firm TerraWatch\nSpace, said Chinese commercial satellites score highly in various key\ncapabilities.<\/p>\n
He assesses that Jilin-1 even appears superior to US commercial\ncounterparts in terms of cadence, or how often satellites can revisit\nthe same area. This advantage is largely driven by the size of China\u2019s\nsatellite fleet.<\/p>\n
According to Ravichandran, China is also on par in future\ntechnologies like edge computing, which is data processing directly in\nspace before being sent back to Earth.<\/p>\n
In fact, that advantage is expected to grow further. A commission\nappointed by the US Congress to monitor Chinese activities states that\nthe country now leads the world in research impact in several remote\nsensing technology fields.<\/p>\n
Chinese Satellites Unveil the Veil, While Raising Questions<\/p>\n
Some companies even openly market the advantages of partnering with\nChinese providers because they are outside Western or US regulatory\ncontrol, including shutter control rules, which are restrictions on what\nimages can and cannot be released.<\/p>\n
XRTech Group, a Dubai-based data analytics company partnered with\nSiwei, for example, states that they are not bound by export licensing\nrestrictions and bureaucratic hurdles that often slow down data\nacquisition.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/how-china-became-irans-spy-through-the-sky-route-1776693062", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }