China can continue to buy Iranian oil, US President Donald Trump said Tuesday in what appeared to be relief for Tehran from sanctions Washington has previously imposed to punish the trade.
"China can now continue to purchase Oil from Iran. Hopefully, they will be purchasing plenty from the U.S., also," Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform as he travelled to a NATO summit in The Hague.
China's position as the main buyer of Iranian oil has served as a crucial lifeline for Tehran as its economy is battered by crippling international sanctions.
Beijing buys more than 90 percent of Iran's oil exports, according to the analysis firm Kpler.
It imported 1.3 million barrels of Iranian crude oil a day in April, down from a five-month high in March.
Last month the United States announced fresh sanctions on Iranian oil sales to Beijing, however, as Trump's administration continued its "maximum pressure" campaign against Tehran.
China has condemned recent US bombing strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities and called for parties in the region, "especially Israel", to de-escalate.
And it has called for a political solution to help a declared ceasefire hold.
But analysts say that the fighting between Israel and Iran has severely reduced Beijing's regional leverage.
