The Biden Administration is left hanging

and there's more at stake than you may think

Welcome to China Uncensored, I'm Chris Chappell.

Before we begin, the reason this show is possible  is thanks to the support from viewers like you.  

YouTube would have run us out of business with  all the demonetization and shadow banning.  

So for as little as a dollar per episode  on the crowd funding website Patreon,  

you can help us continue to uncensor China. 

The Chinese Communist Party is actively  making the world a more dangerous place.  

One of the ways is by dethroning  the US as the global superpower.  

And to do that, the Communist Party supports  authoritarian regimes around the world.

The latest example:  

Iran. China just signed a 25 year deal with  Iran worth potentially 400 billion dollars.

That money will go into a variety of Iranian  projects. The usual Belt and Road stuff. Ports,  

oil, gas. Oh, and did I mention nuclear power?

Wasn't there something about Iran and  nuclear power the world was concerned with?

“U.S. intelligence agencies  have long suspected Iran  

of using its civilian nuclear program as a cover  for clandestine weapons development”—basically,  

they're trying to make nuclear weapons.

And the fun doesn't stop at nuclear  technology. Iran and China “will also  

deepen their defense cooperation as China  will transfer some military technology.”

Fantastic. 

Israel is particularly concerned about that.

So what does China get out of this?  Global power and influence. Oh, and oil. 

Iran is an international pariah. It  has a horrible human rights track  

record. That's why Iran and China can  be friends--they have so much in common.

The US ranks Iran as one of the top  

state sponsors of terrorism. Not to  mention its aggressive nuclear program.

That's why the Trump Administration  put sanctions on Iran.

Now the Biden administration is hoping  to use those sanctions as leverage  

to get Iran to back off from its nuclear program.

But the new Iran-China deal gives Iran a  lot of power. It doesn't have to come back  

to the negotiating table with the US, if  it can increase trade with China instead.

In fact, already the China-Iran deal  

has forced the Biden Administration to go a little  softer on Iran. Soon after that deal was penned,  

Biden came to Iran with a new proposal  that included more sanctions relief.

Iran desperately needs sanctions relief to prop  up its economy. But now it's also looking at  

selling more stuff to China instead of to Europe  or other countries that would follow US sanctions.

China imports about 70% of its oil. And  now, more of that oil will come from Iran.

“In exchange [for the deal],  China would receive a regular and  

heavily discounted supply of Iranian oil.”

“The deal helps Iran dodge American  sanctions, and the cash infusion  

will ease economic pressure  on the ruling mullahs.”

So more money for the Iranian regime, and for  Iranian backed terrorist groups like Hezbollah. 

There's another part of the deal  that potentially weakens the US.  

China and Iran want to create a joint bank. It's  unclear how, or even if, this bank would work.

But it's part of a bigger push by China,  

Iran, and Russia to break the US dollar's  hold on global trade and finance.

Nearly all of the 71 countries that are  part of China's Belt and Road Initiative  

have deals with China that involve US dollars.

And the power of the US dollar is precisely why  US sanctions work to rein in regimes like Iran and  

North Korea, as well as specific Chinese officials  who have been crushing democracy in Hong Kong.

So far all those reasons, China and Iran teaming  up is not good for the US and the free world.

And there's an even bigger problem. America's  enemies are working together up to undermine  

what Biden calls the “rules  based” international order.

As the Wall Street Journal says,  “Think Iran and Russia in Syria;  

or China and Russia evading United  Nations sanctions to aid North Korea;  

or China and Russia working through  Cuba to prop up Venezuela's regime.”

Of course the deal is  controversial even inside Iran.  

After all, China doesn't have a great  reputation when it comes to these kinds of  

bilateral deals. They often end up with the  other party getting stuck in a debt trap. 

Very little about the deal has been made  public. And there's a push for more details.

But an Iranian spokesperson said they  have no legal obligation to publish it.  

The agreement was “not an  international treaty, or agreement,  

and does not require parliamentary approval  under this legal interpretation,” he said.

Ah secret deals. Always a plus  when you're a dictator. By the way,  

that Iranian spokesperson also, “hinted that  China was standing in the way of publication”

Which is always reassuring when the Chinese  regime doesn't want you to know what's in a deal.

And now it's time for me to answer a question from  a member of the China Uncensored 50 Cent Army,  

fans who support the show on Patreon.

Logan asks, “I've been listening to a  podcast with a lot of Korean War history.  

When China invades Taiwan, do you think  Xi, like Mao, will be able/willing  

to throw his troops into the  meat grinder like that conflict?”

Great question. So one of the reasons the Chinese  Communist Party is trying to undermine the United  

States with things like this Iran Deal, is  so when the Chinese regime invades Taiwan,  

the US will have less power to  stop it—like by sanctioning China.

And if the Communist Party successfully  conquers Taiwan, China becomes a superpower.  

The world as we know it will change forever. And  everyone knows that, including the US and Taiwan.  

So they'll probably put up a  good fight. At least I hope so.

Unfortunately, the CCP will be more than  willing to sacrifice as many Chinese soldiers  

as it needs to. It might not quite be like  the human wave attacks in the Korean War,  

but in the Communist Party's view,  Chinese soldiers are expendable.

Unlike in America, where the wholesale  slaughter of your troops could hurt your  

chances of reelection. But that's the advantage to  being an authoritarian leader of a country where  

you control the media. The public doesn't have to  be bothered with reports of casualties. In fact,  

a war could be pretty good for getting  the public to ignore any internal problems  

and focus on coming together to defeat the enemy.

Thanks for your question Logan. 

And if you'd like me to answer your question,  join the China Uncensored 50 cent army for  

as little as a dollar per episode. Visit  pateron.com/ChinaUncensored to learn more.

Once again I'm Chris Chappell, see you next time.