20-Point program to counter US sanctions
Against the backdrop of US efforts to impose additional sanctions against Iran and Russia, Tehran has drawn up a list of countermeasures, the head of Majlis Research Center said.
In a recent interview with Sputnik, Kazem Jalali added that together with Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, the center would consider a 20-point program of emergency measures to counter the US sanctions.
"As part of this plan, the government will earmark 1 billion tomans [$265 million] for the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps and as much toward the development of the country's missile program," he said.
The plan deals with issues like US support for terrorism, human rights violations in the US, measures to counter US economic sanctions, support for the Iranian armed forces and coordination of actions against US terrorist policies in the region.
Emad Abshenas, a longstanding Sputnik expert, said IRGC is Iran's main defense against US economic pressure and military terror in the region.
"The plan focuses on countermeasures to the terrorist policy the US is spreading in the world. This includes Iranian sanctions against organizations that have close links to Washington and provide financial assistance to terrorists, sell them arms and violate human rights," he said.
Main Line of Defense
The Sputnik expert described IRGC's elite unit, the Quds Force, as the main line of defense against "US terrorism and crimes", and said IRGC and the Iranian missile program have helped keep terrorists away from the country's borders.
"These two shields are serving the interests of the entire Middle Eastern region by fighting terrorists in Syria and Iraq. That's why without IRGC, terrorism in the Middle East simply can't be rooted out," he said.
Abshenas noted that by introducing new sanctions against Iran, the US is violating the terms of the nuclear deal reached in 2015 between Iran and a group of world powers.
"[Iran] signed that agreement to show the world that the Iranian nuclear program is purely peaceful and that we are fulfilling our international obligations. It is the US that is walking back on its commitments," he said.
"According to this plan, Iran will feel free to suspend the implementation of the nuclear agreement if any other signatory violates its terms."
On June 15, the US Senate approved, by an overwhelming majority, an Iran sanctions bill, which included an amendment of new anti-Russian sanctions.
The latter was a response to Kremlin's alleged interference in the 2016 presidential election. On June 21, media reported that because the bill violates the US Constitution, its consideration by the US House of Representatives faces procedural hurdles. Although the issue has been fixed lately, it is not known when the legislation will come up for a vote in the house.
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