Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated Sunday that his government provided 20 million barrels of oil from its own budget to equip the IRGC Air and Space Force. The claim follows criticism that the regime funds its proxies with public money; Pezeshkian appeared to assert the oil came from government coffers, not from citizens. No independent verification of his figure.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, speaking Sunday evening in a speech reported by a Tehran-based the source, said: 'If we didn't support the fighters, our fighters wouldn't be able to fight. The government gave 20 million barrels of its oil to the forces of the IRGC Air and Space Force, from its own money, so the forces could equip themselves.'
The remark appeared to be a defense of the regime's spending amid ongoing criticism that the government diverts national resources to Iran's network of regional proxies and to the IRGC rather than investing in the struggling domestic economy. A critical comment appended by the channel noted: 'We should just remind — there is no such thing as the government's money. There is the citizens' money.'
Pezeshkian's figure — 20 million barrels — was given without accounting for current oil prices, timing, or which specific IRGC units benefited. The presidency under Pezeshkian has faced persistent pressure from the IRGC over budget allocations; the general's comment appears to frame the transfer as an official, transparent allocation rather than a diversion. There is no independent confirmation of the barrel figure or of the total value involved.
As The Zioneer has previously reported in the context of Iran's regional posture, the IRGC has repeatedly asserted that it does not betray its allies and considers itself the 'true winners' of any conflict, as per a senior Iranian source cited by Reuters. However, this Sunday statement is the first time the presidency has publicly named a specific oil quantity used for IRGC equipping.
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