Iran parliament increases missile funds in response to US sanctions

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Iran's parliament voted Sunday to allocate 520 million US dollars to develop its missile program to fight Washington's "adventurism" and sanctions, and to boost the foreign operations of the country's Revolutionary Guards.

A total of 240 lawmakers voted for the bill, out of the 244 parliamentarians present. The vote came after fresh US sanctions in July against Iran, targeting Tehran's missile program.

"The bill is backed by the foreign ministry and the government and is part of the measures by the JCPOA supervision committee to confront the recent US Congress law," vice foreign minister Abbas Araghchi.

He was referring to a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, known officially as the JCPOA, under which Iran agreed to strict limits on its nuclear program in exchange for an easing of sanctions.

The bill mandates the government to allocate an additional 260 million US dollars for the "development of the missile program" and the same amount to the Revolutionary Guards' foreign operations wing, the Quds Force, state news agency IRNA said. After Larijani announced the vote results, lawmakers shouted: "Death to America."

The bill must now pass a second vote before being submitted to a clerical body for final approval and passage into law.

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Source(s): AFP