Russian Missile Deliveries to Iran Could Begin in Late 2015

A senior Iranian official said Tuesday that Russia could begin delivering sophisticated S-300 air defense systems to Iran by the end of this year. The statement to Russia's Interfax news agency by Ali Shamkhani, the head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, comes a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin lifted a five-year ban on providing the missile batteries to Iran. Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev told Interfax on Tuesday that the speed of deliveries depends on the manufacturers and is expected to take at least six months to complete. The $800-million contract dates back to 2008, but Russia froze the contract in 2010 after the United Nations Security Council imposed sanctions on Iran. US concerned The United States expressed concern Monday about Putin's decision to go ahead with the sales. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the administration had previously made known its objection to Russia's possible sale of S-300s to Iran, and that Secretary of State John Kerry "had the opportunity to raise these concerns once again in a recent conversation" with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Earnest said Russia understands the U.S. takes seriously the safety and security of its allies in the region. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said Monday that transfer of S-300 missiles to Iran would not violate existing U.N. Security Council sanctions, but that the U.S. believes "this is not the time" for the sale given the unrest in the region. She also said the U.S. does not think such a transfer would affect the unity of the six powers that are negotiating with Iran. Explaining the decision to lift the ban on providing S-300s to Iran, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said that given the progress reached between Iran and the six P5+1 world powers: China, France, Russia, Britain, and the United States, plus Germany - recently in nuclear talks, the rationale for the international embargo on supplying Tehran with S-300s, and Russia's own ban, had "completely disappeared." Lavrov added that the S-300 is "exclusively defensive in nature, not adapted for offensive purposes and will not jeopardize the security of any state in the region, including, of course, Israel."



from Voice of America http://ift.tt/1DYKon3