BICOM

The former UN Secretary-General had expressed concern that Iran may have violated an arms embargo by supplying weapons including missiles to Hezbollah.

Ban Ki-moon issued a report to the UN Security Council at the end of December on the eve of standing down from his position.

Reuters says it has seen the report in which he says: “I am very concerned… that transfers of arms and related materiel from the Islamic Republic of Iran to Hezbollah may have been undertaken contrary (to a Security Council resolution).”

Hezbollah is widely thought to be extensively financed by Iran.

Under conditions covering the nuclear deal between Iran and the P5+1 powers (US, UK, France, Russia, China and Germany), the UN Secretary-General must report every six months to the Security Council on any violations of sanctions still in place.

Ban’s first such report in July criticised several instances of Iranian ballistic missile testing earlier this year, which appear to violate existing Security Council resolutions, including Resolution 2231, passed the day after the nuclear accord was signed, which compels Iran to refrain from any work on ballistic missiles for eight years.

In another development yesterday, which will likely heighten such concerns, Iran’s parliament voted to increase the country’s military spending, including on long-range missiles.

The Tasnim news agency reported that 173 parliamentarians voted in favour and ten against a five-year plan requiring at least five per cent of the annual budget be allocated to military affairs. According to Reuters, military spending stood at almost two per cent in 2015/2016. The plan also specifies developing long-range missiles, armed drones and cyber-war capabilities.

Also yesterday, the Pentagon announced that a US Navy destroyer fired three warning shots at armed Iranian patrol boats as they advanced towards the vessel at the entrance to the Persian Gulf.