A Chinese-owned oil products tanker came under attack near the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week, marking the first known assault on a Chinese oil tanker since the Iran-US conflict intensified, according to a report by Chinese media outlet Caixin.
The incident was reported on Monday, the same day President Donald Trump announced a US-led initiative to assist vessels stranded in the strategically crucial waterway. However, the plan was put on hold within 24 hours after Iran retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting ships and neighbouring countries, particularly the UAE.
Caixin, citing a person familiar with the matter, reported on Thursday that the attack was the first of its kind involving a Chinese oil tanker. Images from the vessel reportedly showed its deck on fire, with markings reading “CHINA OWNER & CREW”. There was no immediate clarity on whether any crew members were injured.
The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow maritime corridor through which nearly 20 per cent of the world’s oil and gas supplies move, has seen traffic severely disrupted since the conflict in the Middle East erupted on February 28. Renewed attacks on commercial shipping have left hundreds of vessels and nearly 20,000 seafarers stranded inside the Gulf.
Maritime security sources identified the damaged ship as the Marshall Islands-flagged oil products and chemical tanker JV Innovation. The vessel reportedly sent distress alerts about a fire on its deck while sailing near Mina Saqr off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.
China, one of the largest buyers of Iranian oil despite a US-led blockade in the Gulf of Oman, has not officially commented on the attack. Even Beijing’s Foreign Ministry did not respond to media queries.
The incident came amid rapidly rising tensions in the Middle East region, with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps accused of carrying out multiple strikes on merchant ships following US efforts to escort commercial traffic through Hormuz.
Global shipping firms have also reported attacks in recent days. On May 6, French shipping giant CMA CGM said its container vessel San Antonio was targeted while transiting the strait a day earlier, leaving crew members injured and causing damage to the ship.
Diplomatic efforts, meanwhile, appeared to be underway behind the scenes. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Beijing this week, where both sides discussed reopening shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, according to a statement from China’s foreign ministry.
Sources and officials familiar with ongoing negotiations said Washington and Tehran are also inching towards a temporary and limited agreement aimed at pausing hostilities, though key disputes remain unresolved.
Trump on Wednesday warned Iran that the restoration of oil and natural gas shipments disrupted by the ongoing conflict would depend on Tehran agreeing to a deal, the details of which he did not disclose.
“If they don’t agree, the bombing starts,” Trump said in a post on social media.
A tenuous ceasefire between the US and Iran has largely remained in place since April 8, though diplomatic efforts have yet to produce a breakthrough. Direct talks between the two sides, hosted by Pakistan last month, ended without any agreement.
The conflict began on February 28 after the US and Israel launched strikes targeting Iran.
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