Tehran approves plan to expand military spending
Developing missile programme is part of the agenda
Iranian MPs approved plans yesterday to expand military spending to 5 per cent of the budget, including developing the country’s long-range missile programme.
The vote is a boost to Iran’s military establishment – the regular army, the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps ( IRGC) and defence ministry – which was allocated almost 2 per cent of the 2015-16 budget.
But it could put Iran on a collision course with the incoming Trump administration, and fuel criticism from Arab and western states that say Tehran’s recent ballistic missile tests were inconsistent with a UN resolution on the country.
The resolution, adopted last year as part of the deal to curb its nuclear activities, calls on Iran to refrain from work on ballistic missiles designed to deliver nuclear weapons. Tehran says it has not carried out any work on missiles specifically designed to carry such payloads.
Tasnim news agency said 173 MPs voted in favour of an article in Iran’s five-year development plan that “requires government to increase Iran’s defence capabilities as a regional power and preserve the country’s national security and interests by allocating at least 5 per cent of annual budget” to military affairs.
Ten MPs voted against the plan, which includes developing longrange missiles, armed drones and cyber-war capabilities. The Obama administration says Iran’s ballistic missile tests did not breach the terms of the nuclear agreement with Tehran. Donald Trump, the president- elect, who criticised the accord as “the worst deal ever negotiated”, has said he would stop Iran’s missile programme.
The increase in military spending is part of a growth plan for 2016-2021 first announced in July 2015 by the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Ayatollah Khamenei supported last year’s nuclear deal with world powers that curbed Iran’s nuclear programme in return for a lifting of international sanctions.
However, he has since called for Iran to avoid further rapprochement with the West, and maintain its military strength.
Iran has test-fired several ballistic missiles since the nuclear deal and the US Treasury has imposed new sanctions on entities and individuals linked to the programme.
Former UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon said last year that the missile launches were “not consistent with the constructive spirit” of the nuclear deal. He also did not say if they actually breached the UN resolution.
The United States, Britain, France and Germany wrote to Mr Ban in March about the missile tests, which they said were inconsistent with and in defiance of the council resolution. Most UN sanctions on Iran were lifted after the deal but Iran is still subject to a five-year UN arms embargo – unless approved in advance by the UN Security Council.