Iran plans to increase military budget by 200 percent
Al Jazeera
Defence spending boost needs parliament nod, comes as Iran and Israel exchanged tit-for-tat missile strikes in October.
Iran plans to triple its military budget, a government spokeswoman has said, as tensions with rival Israel rise amid the Israeli military’s offensives in Gaza and Lebanon.
The planned defence budget increase is part of a proposal submitted by the government to parliament for approval, Fatemeh Mohajerani, the government spokeswoman, said on Tuesday.
“A considerable raise that amounts to 200 percent has been witnessed in the country’s defence budget,” Mohajerani said, giving no further details.
The proposed budget will be debated, with lawmakers expected to finalise it in March 2025.
Iran’s military spending in 2023 was about $10.3bn, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) think tank.
