The United States does not currently want to impose secondary sanctions on Chinese buyers over their purchases of Iranian crude oil, but is keeping the measure available as a precautionary option. Former US national security official Mark Pfielfer made the comments in an interview with Al Jazeera. He said the Trump administration and the Treasury Department appear to be keeping the measure ready for use if needed.

Pfielfer said broad direct economic action against Beijing would be diplomatically difficult because the US and Chinese economies remain deeply interdependent. According to him, Washington’s current main objective is to create conditions in which China feels comfortable buying fuel oil from alternative sources.

He said Chinese refineries are purchasing sanctioned Iranian oil at discounted prices, giving them an economic advantage over global competitors. He also said Beijing has no interest in helping Washington during the international crisis and may be assisting Tehran behind the scenes. Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to visit Washington for a meeting with President Donald Trump on September 24.