Iran's military power rests with the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), which is chaired by the president, who has no operational functions but performs administrative tasks. The council works out the mechanics of all military operations, subject to the supreme commander of all armed services, the Ayatollah Khamenei. The Ayatollah appoints and removes all military commanders, and control of the military flows through him.Iran has three separate military organizations. The armed forces - usually referred to as the Army - consist of the regular military formations. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is separate organization, with its own air force, army, and navy. The third formation, the Order Forces, includes the national police, the gendarmerie and border guards, and the Revolutionary Committees.The IRGC has increasingly become the de facto primary military force, and is noticeably better equipped than the regular military. The Revolutionary Guard appears to be the recipient of most new weapons and to have control of the various strategic weapons, such as ballistic missiles and chemical and biological weapons. It is also responsible for the country's nuclear weapon development program.
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