Parliament's Plan to Counter U.S. Actions; Allocation of 1000 Billion Tomans to Iran's Missile Program

Kazem Jalali, head of the Parliament Research Center, stated on Tuesday, July 6, that a plan to counter U.S. actions will be presented to the Parliament next week. He specified that this plan allocates 1000 billion tomans to Iran's missile industries to counter U.S. actions. According to the IRIB news agency, the head of the Parliament Research Center noted that this plan consists of 17 articles and 10 sections, emphasizing support for the country's armed forces in section seven. In this section, the government is mandated to allocate 1000 billion tomans for the expansion of missile activities and counter-terrorism, and another 1000 billion tomans to the Quds Force. Previously, the head of the National Security Commission of the Parliament stated that this plan was prepared in response to recent actions by the U.S. Congress against Iran. On June 15 of this year, the U.S. Senate passed a bill known as the 'Countering Iran's Destabilizing Activities Act' with a decisive majority. This bill identifies Iran's ballistic missile program as a threat. It imposes mandatory sanctions on any individual or entity associated with Iran's ballistic missile program and also on commercial partners of this program. In addition to this bill, the U.S. has also imposed unilateral sanctions in recent months against individuals and companies linked to Iran's missile program in response to Iran's missile tests. In this context, a U.S. State Department spokesperson stated last week, 'We continue to monitor Iran's ballistic missile program closely.' Following the passage of the new sanctions bill in the U.S. Senate, several members of the Parliament, as well as Ali Akbar Velayati, international advisor to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic and a member of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) oversight board, described the Senate's resolution as contradictory to the JCPOA and promised that a suitable response would be provided. Aladdin Boroujerdi, head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Parliament, previously stated regarding the 'Countering U.S. Adventurism and Terrorism' plan: 'In defense of national interests, this plan is a powerful display of the Islamic Republic of Iran against the recent actions of the U.S. Congress.' Jalali also explained other sections of this plan, stating: 'Necessary actions against terrorist groups and their supporters, the establishment of a special branch in the judiciary for the trial of terrorists, the preparation of a comprehensive and updated list of terrorist groups, necessary actions regarding human rights violations by the U.S., and the specification of penalties in this regard against the U.S. are among the subsequent sections of the plan to counter U.S. adventurism and terrorism.' The head of the Parliament Research Center added: 'Section 9 emphasizes support for Iranian citizens and the preparation of a list of Iranian prisoners who have been imprisoned in the U.S. for unfounded reasons of violating sanctions to be presented to the Supreme National Security Council and necessary actions for their release.' In recent years, the Islamic Republic's approach to regional and international issues has faced international criticism. During nuclear negotiations, world powers had repeatedly expressed hope that Iran could play a responsible and constructive role in global relations by resolving the nuclear issue. However, human rights violations, Iran's pursuit of its missile program, and what is described as the Islamic Republic's 'destabilizing' role in the region continue to draw criticism from the U.S. and its allies, especially in the Middle East, and the new Senate sanctions package against Iran has been prepared in light of such behaviors. In this context, Iran will take 'reciprocal and proportional actions' in response to the Senate's sanctions package.