US Wants Iran to Have Limited Access to Military Equipment - Carter

According to US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, Iran should be limited in its ability to purchase different kinds of military equipment.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Iran’s ability to obtain military equipment should remain limited, the US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Tuesday.

“We want them [Iran] to continue to be isolated in terms of the kind of equipment material they are able to get,” Carter said.

In April 2015, Iran and the P5+1 group of countries, including China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States and Germany, agreed on a framework deal to permit Tehran a peaceful nuclear program and gradually remove all economic sanctions.

Iran has been pushing for the end of the arms embargo too, but Washington has been opposing the lift.

On April 13, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree lifting the ban on the sales of an advanced version of S-300 air defense missile system to Iran, which did not fall under the UN arms embargo.

The United States expressed concern over Russia’s announcement, arguing the sale would create instability in the Middle East.

The United States introduced several rounds of sanctions against Iran following the Iranian revolution in 1979. In March 2007, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) tightened international sanctions against Tehran introducing a ban on arms sales.