Tertius News is an AI-native newsroom: an AI model reads the linked source articles below and extracts what each outlet reported, so you can compare their coverage side by side. How this works →

The US sanctioned Chinese oil refineries. Now China is really pushing back

China's Commerce Ministry has ordered citizens and companies not to comply with US sanctions on five Chinese refineries accused of trading Iranian oil, marking the first use of a law against 'improper' foreign actions. The move escalates Sino-American tensions over Iran oil trade, drawing support from Russia.

By Tertius News AI Desk 4 outlets · 5 articles Version 1 Coverage May 2–7, 2026 Published Aug 14

Lead

China has taken an unprecedented step in its economic confrontation with the United States, ordering its citizens and companies not to comply with US sanctions against five Chinese refineries accused of handling Iranian oil. The order, issued Saturday by China's Ministry of Commerce, marks the first application of a law designed to counter what Beijing views as "long-arm jurisdiction" by Washington.

Coverage Comparison

Reports from multiple news outlets confirm that China's Commerce Ministry issued a "prohibition order" stating that the US sanctions "shall not be recognized, enforced, or complied with." The ministry said the sanctions "improperly" restricted normal trade and business activities, violating international law, and that the order was issued to safeguard China's "national sovereignty, security, and development interests" as well as the lawful rights of Chinese citizens.

The order targets five refineries: Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery, and four independent "teapot" refineries — Shandong Jincheng Petrochemical Group, Hebei Xinhai Chemical Group, Shouguang Luqing Petrochemical, and Shandong Shengxing Chemical. These companies were blacklisted by the US Department of the Treasury last month, with Washington accusing them of generating hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for Iran's military through crude oil purchases.

According to the US State Department, the sanctions are part of "decisive action" to disrupt Iran's illicit oil trade, holding Iran and sanctions-evading partners accountable as long as oil revenues fund "destabilising activities" in the region.

Key Claims

China's Ministry of Commerce has ordered that US sanctions against five Chinese refineries "shall not be recognized, enforced, or complied with," as reported by multiple sources.
The US Treasury imposed the sanctions on April 24, accusing Hengli of being "one of Tehran's most valued customers" and of generating hundreds of millions of dollars for Iran's military.
China's Commerce Ministry says the sanctions violate international law and lack UN authorization, an assertion carried by several outlets.
The order is the first use of a measure designed to block "improper" foreign actions, according to analysts cited by the South China Morning Post.
Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova welcomed China's decision, condemning unilateral sanctions as "brazen interference" in sovereign countries' affairs, a remark reported by TASS.
China is Iran's largest trade partner and the biggest buyer of Iranian oil, with Chinese buyers receiving over 80% of Iran's oil shipments in 2025, a fact mentioned in some reports.

Perspectives

Beijing's perspective: China's Commerce Ministry frames the sanctions as an "improper" extraterritorial application of US law that violates international law and basic norms of international relations. The order is positioned as a defensive measure to protect national sovereignty and development interests, with officials emphasizing China's consistent opposition to unilateral sanctions lacking UN authorization.

Washington's perspective: The US State Department describes the sanctions as "decisive action" to disrupt Iran's illicit oil trade, arguing that Iran's oil revenues fund destabilizing activities in the region. The Treasury's designation of Hengli as "one of Tehran's most valued customers" underscores US concerns about the scale of the trade.

Moscow's perspective: Russia's Foreign Ministry publicly supports China's move, with spokeswoman Maria Zakharova calling the decision "entirely justified" and condemning unilateral sanctions as "illegitimate" and a form of "brazen interference" in sovereign countries' affairs. This alignment highlights a converging Sino-Russian stance against US sanctions policy.

Analysts' perspective: Commentators cited by the South China Morning Post suggest the order could be a potential headache for US sanctions enforcement, marking a new stage in Beijing's pushback against American long-arm jurisdiction. The deployment of China's anti-sanctions law, which allows businesses to sue for compensation if they suffer losses from complying with foreign sanctions, adds a legal dimension to the confrontation.

How each outlet told it

Al Jazeera as of May 3, 2026, 7:31 AM UTC

Framing: China defies US sanctions — Neutral

Facts Included:

China has announced an injunction to block US sanctions on five Chinese refiners
The sanctions were imposed by the US Department of the Treasury
The refiners are accused of buying oil from Iran
China's Ministry of Commerce says the sanctions violate international law
The ministry has issued a prohibition order to safeguard national sovereignty and development interests

Read the source article →

Al Jazeera as of May 7, 2026, 10:01 AM UTC

Framing: China takes a stand against US sanctions — Analytical

Facts Included:

China has ordered citizens and companies not to comply with US sanctions on five Chinese refineries
The move marks a significant escalation in Beijing's efforts to counter US 'long-arm jurisdiction'
China's anti-sanctions law allows businesses to sue for compensation if they suffer losses due to compliance with foreign sanctions

Read the source article →

South China Morning Post as of May 3, 2026, 1:01 PM UTC

Framing: China pushes back against US sanctions — Neutral

Facts Included:

China has ordered companies not to comply with US sanctions on five Chinese oil refiners
The order is the first application of a measure designed to block 'improper' foreign actions
The US State Department says the sanctions are part of 'decisive action' to disrupt Iran's illicit oil trade

Read the source article →

TASS — English as of May 7, 2026, 11:15 AM UTC

Framing: Russia supports China's stance on US sanctions — Supportive

Facts Included:

Moscow welcomes Beijing's decision not to enforce US sanctions
The US has blacklisted five Chinese companies for trading oil with Iran
Russia condemns unilateral sanctions

Read the source article →

The Hindu — World as of May 2, 2026, 2:15 PM UTC

Framing: China defies US sanctions on Iranian oil — Brief

Facts Included:

China will not comply with US sanctions against five firms targeted for purchasing Iranian oil
China is a key customer for Iranian oil through independent 'teapot' refineries

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimChina has announced an injunction to block US sanctions on five Chinese refiners accused of buying oil from Iran.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeera as of May 3, 2026, 7:31 AM UTC the outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimThe US Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on the five Chinese refiners, including Hengli Petrochemical, for trading oil with Iran.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeera as of May 3, 2026, 7:31 AM UTC the outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimChina's Ministry of Commerce says the sanctions violate international law and has issued a prohibition order to safeguard national sovereignty and development interests.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeera as of May 3, 2026, 7:31 AM UTC the outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimThe US sanctions are part of 'decisive action' to disrupt Iran's illicit oil trade, according to the US State Department.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via South China Morning Post as of May 3, 2026, 1:01 PM UTC
ClaimChina is Iran's largest trade partner and the biggest buyer of Iranian oil, with Chinese buyers receiving over 80% of Iran's oil shipments in 2025.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source quoted from Al Jazeera as of May 7, 2026, 10:01 AM UTC the outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimMoscow welcomes Beijing's decision not to enforce US sanctions against Chinese companies, and condemns unilateral sanctions as 'illegitimate' and 'brazen interference' in sovereign countries' affairs.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 7, 2026, 11:15 AM UTC
ClaimChina's anti-sanctions law allows businesses to sue for compensation if they suffer losses due to compliance with foreign sanctions.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via Al Jazeera as of May 7, 2026, 10:01 AM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

4 outlets · 5 articles consulted: Al Jazeera, South China Morning Post, TASS — English, The Hindu — World 7 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-14