LEGISLATORS VOTE
Iran to increase military spending and develop long-range missiles
The Islamic republic’s vote could put it on a collision course with the Trump administration and fuel criticism from other western states on recent ballistic missile tests
Dubai — Iranian legislators approved plans on Monday to expand military spending to 5% of the budget, including developing the country’s long-range missile programme, which US president-elect Donald Trump has pledged to halt. The vote is a boost to Iran’s military establishment — the regular army, the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and defence ministry — which was allocated almost 2% of the 2015-16 budget. But it could put the Islamic republic on a collision course with the Trump administration and fuel criticism from other western states that say Tehran’s recent ballistic missile tests are inconsistent with a UN resolution on Iran. The resolution, adopted in 2016 as part of the deal to curb Iran’s nuclear activities, calls on Iran to refrain from work on ballistic missiles designed to deliver nuclear weapons. Tehran says it has not carried out work on missiles designed to carry such payloads. Tasnim news agency said 173 legislators voted in favour of an article in Iran’s f...
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