TEHRAN – The Iranian parliament has approved a bill to counter “terrorist and adventurous actions” of the US in the region. The legislation includes increased spending on Tehran’s missile development and Revolutionary Guards.
The countermeasures, which were approved by 240 Iranian lawmakers on Sunday, would see more money allocated to Iran’s missile program as well as to the Quds Force, the Revolutionary Guards’ extraterritorial operations branch, among other measures. They would split $520 million from the budget equally between missile activities and the Revolutionary Guards, according to Press TV.
The legislators stressed that the bill does not violate the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and major world powers, but accused Washington of attempts to “kill” the landmark agreement.
“The bill has very wisely tried not to violate the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action] and also give no chance to the other party to manipulate it,” Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said, as cited by IRNA news agency. He added that the bill will be supported by the government of President Hassan Rouhani, as it is required to pass a second reading before being submitted to the Guardian Council for final approval.
“Iran will never pay the price of violating the JCPOA,” spokesman for the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee Hossein Naghavian said, adding that Washington “is after imposing the cost of killing the nuclear deal.”
