Russia has fully delivered all parts of S-300 air defense system to Iran and the two countries have agreed to develop logistical and technical cooperation, a senior Iranian government official said.
The air defense system was finally handed over to Iran despite the ups and downs and Iran currently has taken possession of the technology as well as air defense technology, spokesman of Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Hossein Naqavi-Hosseini was quoted as saying by IRNA.
Given the full implementation of the S-300 deal by Russia, there is no need for pursuing complaint with the International Court of Arbitration over delays in delivery of the air defense system, he added, noting that Tehran and Moscow have excellent ties in the field of arms interaction.
Meanwhile, a battery of Russian S-300 air defense missile launchers has been transported to Syria, Russia’s Defense Ministry said in a statement early October 2016. Its sole purpose is to defend a Russian naval base and warships, the Ministry added.
“Indeed, the Syrian Arab Republic received an S-300 anti-aircraft missile system. This system is designed to ensure the safety of the naval base in Syrian city of Tartus and ships located in the coastal area in Syria,” the Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov told the media.
Konashenkov said it is unclear why the deployment of the missile system has created such a fuss in the West.
“The S-300 is a purely defensive system and poses no threat,” he said, adding that before the deployment of S-300, Russia had delivered Fort air defense missile systems to Syria.
In November 2015, Moscow deployed its newest S-400 air defense missile system to Khmeimim in Syria as part of a security boost following the downing of a Russian jet by Turkey near the border with that country. At the time, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the S-400 systems are not targeting Russia’s partners, “with whom we fight terrorists in Syria together.”
The S-400 is the most advanced anti-aircraft defense system in Russia.
