Iraq and Russia are now engaged in talks over a deal to supply Baghdad with a Russian missile defense system, a former Iraqi lawmaker said, IraqiNews.com reported.

“Iraq is negotiating a deal to purchase the S-400 missile defense system from Russia,” Hakem al-Zamly, the former chairperson of the parliament’s security and defense committee, told Russia Today TV channel.

The deal “is very important for Iraq and is scheduled to come into effect in two years,” he said.

“Iraq seeks to bolster cooperation with Russia in the field of armament,” he said, citing a $4 billion deal to purchase mobile and fixed-wing aircrafts from Russia.

S-400 entered into service with the Russian armed forces in 2007. The system is capable of hitting targets at heights up to 30 kilometers within a range of 400 kilometers. It is designed for supersonic targets and chemical attack air defense.