Russia: No S-300 Delivery to Iran
15-16 Apr 09 | PTV
Russia’s state arms export service has declared that the country is not delivering its advanced S-300 anti-aircraft missile system to Iran.
“Nothing is happening. There are no deliveries,” Interfax news agency quoted Alexander Fomin, First Deputy Director of Russia’s Federal Military and Technical Cooperation Service, as saying at an arms fair in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Any possible sale of the advanced missile system to Iran is a sensitive issue that could put Moscow and Washington at odds.
Israel had also urged Moscow not to sell the missile system to Iran.
Last week, Israel agreed to sell three surveillance drones worth $50 million to Russia. The Israeli media reported that the move was made in exchange for Russia’s decision not to sell the S-300 missile to Iran.
The truck-mounted S-300PMU, which can travel at more than 2 km per second, can shoot down cruise missiles and aircraft from up to 150 km (90 miles) away.
Israel to Russia: Don’t sell S-300 to Iran
Israel’s Defense Minister Ehud Barak in a meeting with Russia’s deputy foreign minister called on Moscow to not sell advance missiles to Iran.
Barak in his talks with Alexander Saltanov in al-Quds (Jerusalem) on Thursday urged Russia ‘to avoid selling advanced anti-aircraft missile systems to Iran,’ a senior defense official told AFP.
Barak’s comments come as Russia’s state arms export service has declared that the country is not delivering its advanced S-300 anti-aircraft missile system to Iran.
“Nothing is happening. There are no deliveries,” Interfax news agency quoted Alexander Fomin, First Deputy Director of Russia’s Federal Military and Technical Cooperation Service, as saying at an arms fair in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
However, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Mahdi Safari who was visiting Moscow on Wednesday declared that the contract to buy Russia’s S-300 advance missile system is still on track.
“There are no problems with this [S-300] contract,” RIA Novosti quoted Safari as saying.
