Alwaght- Iran has deployed advanced Russian-supplied S-300 air defense systems at one of its military bases, the country’s defense minister has said.
The long-range S-300 system was placed at Iran’s Khatam al-Anbia Air Defense Base, Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan said.
The general added that the domestically-produced Bavar-373 has characteristics similar to the S-300 and would be mass-produced later this year.
“The system, which can be used to confront ballistic and cruise missiles, drones, and warplanes, will be manufactured and put on the production line this year,” Dehqan said.
He added that the system can simultaneously engage several targets.
The $900-million Moscow-Tehran contract to deliver five Russian S-300 systems to Iran was signed in 2007. It was suspended after the adoption of UN Security Council sanctions on Iran in mid-2010.
The contract was revived last year after significant progress had been made in nuclear talks between Iran and six leading world powers, including Russia. A deal that puts restraints on Iran’s ability to create a nuclear device, was later signed.
The version of the S-300 system supplied to Iran is more advanced than the one it paid for under the initial contract. Russia and Iran are expected to fully implement the S-300 contract in 2016, according to Iranian defense officials.
The Islamic Republic has reiterated that its military might poses no threat to other countries, stating that its defense doctrine is based on deterrence.
