The Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy committee has approved the general provisions of a draft bill aimed at boosting the country’s armed forces against the Israeli threat, a senior Iranian lawmaker said on Sunday.
"The general outlines of the bill to strengthen the armed forces in comprehensive confrontation with the crimes and aggressions of the Zionist regime were approved,” committee spokesman Ebrahim Rezaei was quoted as saying by Iranian media.
Rezaei added that the bill was referred to the committee’s defense subcommittee for further review.
According to Rezaei, the bill—introduced by Tehran MP Ali Khezrian—has so far secured the backing of 120 members of the parliament.
Rezaei said the bill was discussed on Sunday during a meeting attended by representatives from the defense ministry, the armed forces general staff, the army, and the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC).
He added that the deputy defense minister told the committee the ministry was working to secure increased funding to meet the country’s defense requirements.
Iran's government spokesperson announced a 200% increase in the military budget in October 2024, saying that the purpose of the move was to "strengthen the country's defense capabilities."
The budget for Iran’s armed forces was 7,220 trillion rials in last year’s budget bill. Given the exchange rate defined in that budget (330,000 rials per dollar), Iran’s military budget last year could be estimated at $15.7 billion.
Based on this, the allocated budget for Iran’s armed forces in the coming year could be estimated at $46 billion.
