Putin's Assistant Announces 'Commencement of Delivery' of S-300 Missiles to Iran

Vladimir Kozhin, the military and technical assistant to the President of Russia, announced the commencement of the delivery process of S-300 air defense systems to Iran. The TASS news agency reported on Thursday, December 3, citing Mr. Kozhin, that the existing contract between Iran and Russia for the delivery of these systems is 'being implemented.' The Russian presidential assistant did not provide further details on this matter. TASS also noted that Mehdi Sanaei, the Iranian ambassador to Moscow, had announced about a month ago the delivery of the first S-300 system to Tehran. Israel and the United States are the main opponents of the delivery of these air defense systems to Iran. Russia and Iran signed a contract to purchase five S-300 systems in 2007, but in the fall of 2010, following the onset of international sanctions against Iran, Dmitry Medvedev, the then-President of Russia, suspended the sale of these systems. Thus, the $800 million contract between the two countries was canceled. However, the Islamic Republic filed a lawsuit against Russia in an international court, seeking $4 billion in damages for breach of contract. Following the Islamic Republic's nuclear agreement with the P5+1 group in Vienna, which is expected to lift sanctions on Tehran, Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, also lifted the ban on the sale of the S-300 systems to Iran last summer. In this context, Putin's assistant stated that Iran has a strong interest in purchasing various Russian weapons. Israel protested to Russia regarding the signing of the S-300 contract with Iran.