Russia to deliver S-300 missiles to Iran

crazyinsane105 said:

The report about the Su-30s was from Dubka, and that is a very unreliable source. The report I just posted up is from Defense Update, and they are much more reliable.

If the Iranians want to completely protect all their nuclear assets from an Israeli air attack, they're definitely going to need a lot of S-300s as a nuclear program (even a peaceful one) requires many facilities. The Iranians bought I think 24 Tor-M1 batteries last year so about two or three dozen batteries of S-300 would be good compensation, plus don't assume the Iranians can't afford it. They have one of the largest oil and natural gas reserves in the world, and much of their spending goes towards domestic defense purchases and R&D.

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Well I guess that depends on your definition of "dozens". Hearing that made me think of around 75 batteries which would be a little much, to say the least. However 24-30 is a much more believable number. It just isn't clear enough.

I guess will just have to wait a little bit to see whether the batteries are delivered or not. My guess is that they will be. The offical denial is probably just there to confuse the US while the sale is completed.

The delivery of that S-300 will go ahead.

Express12 said:

The delivery of that S-300 will go ahead.

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And youre basing that on what exactly??

flyzies said:

And youre basing that on what exactly??

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Amid conflicting reports that Moscow has agreed to sell Iran a number of S-300 low-to-high altitude air-defence systems emerging at the end of 2007, Jane's has learned that Tehran is actually in the final stage of negotiations with Belarus for the acquisition of two surplus trailer-mounted towed S-300PT (SA-10A 'Grumble') systems.

These systems were, until recently, deployed near Minsk as part of Belarus's operational air-defence configuration, and include command-guided Fakel 5V55K missiles (with a range of 47 km) and the baseline 5V55R semi-active radar and Track Via Missile (TVM) guided missile (range 75 km).

Defence industrial sources in Belarus told Jane's that although the value of the contract has yet to be finalised, Belarusian negotiators are asking for USD140 million for the two systems (including parts, maintenance and training). The sources noted that while that figure is considered high for older S-300PT systems (the S-300PT entered Soviet service as far back as 1978), the inflated price reflects an awareness of Iran's urgent requirement for such systems and its consequent willingness to pay well, enhanced by the intense international scrutiny placed on Tehran's efforts to acquire missile technologies and the country's difficulty to fast-track acquisition of such systems from other sources.

Further, the price also reflects the risk involved for Minsk in releasing such systems to Tehran - particularly in its political relations with Moscow.

The sources confirmed that after the contract is finalised, the S-300PT systems would be transferred from Belarus to Iran in semi-knocked down (SKD) condition aboard a number of cargo aircraft. These flights will fall within the framework of the many regular flights (including military aircraft) between Iran and Belarus, and will include the transfer of spare system parts as required by Iran.



Source:


Does anybody know how effective the S-300PT is when compared to modern SAM systems? And why does Iran all of a sudden have a huge urgency to be willing to pay for an older version of the S-300 when they could wait for a few months longer and get the newer versions from Russia?

Iranian Air Defenses Antiquated

I had heard from another source that the S-300 missiles that Iran was negotiating for with Moscow were likewise second-hand weapons, being replaced in Russian service with the S-400 system.

The Iranian air defense network is pretty antiquated. Pretty much anything would be an improvement for them. The Iranians recently took delivery of 29 Tor-M1 (SA-15) missile batteries from Russia, but compared to Iran's land area - their surface-to-air coverage remains relatively thin.

As for why acquiring this system was as "urgent" as the Jane's article suggests, let's just say that as things currently stand, a showdown is only a matter of time. Last September (as some of us recall) Syria's nuclear weapons program was forcefully brought to an end by an Israeli air strike. The Syrian air defense network is several times more dense than Iran's, and the Syrians never even knew the Israeli jets were coming. The Iranians no doubt see the writing on the wall.

Iran is sometimes hard to figure. Their government has a habit of bragging about every notional weapons system that they have a prototype for, but invests relatively little in real world weaponry. They remind me of the "Baghdad Bob" syndrome and his boasts of how Saddam was going to defeat the US and UK militaries.

Re: Iranian Air Defenses Antiquated

MINSK (Reuters) - Ex-Soviet Belarus dismissed as laughable on Friday a report by intelligence journal Jane's that it was ready to sell Iran two missile systems for $140 million.

Jane's on Thursday said Belarus, a fierce critic of the United States, was in the final stages of negotiations with Tehran over the sale of Soviet-era S-300PT air defense systems. The report quoted Belarussian defense sources.

"This is untrue. Such information can only induce laughter," said a spokesman for Belarus's security council. "There are no grounds for the story and no grounds for any sale."

Russia denied last month statements by Iran's defense minister that it intended to supply an S-300 anti-aircraft missile system to Iran.

The S-300 missiles have a longer range than the TOR-M1 surface-to-air missiles which Russia said earlier this year it had delivered to Tehran under a $1 billion contract.

The United States and Israel criticized that deal, saying Iran could use the system to attack its neighbors.

Iran is subject to U.N. sanctions over its refusal to halt sensitive nuclear activity that Western countries suspect it wants to master to build nuclear bombs. But conventional weapons sales to Tehran are not banned.

A foreign ministry spokesman said Belarus would abide by all U.N. measures concerning Iran.

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I wonder what and from who will Iranians be buying next month? S-300 from Ukraine? Or xxx number of Su-27/MiG-29s from xxx(replace xxx with any ex.CCCP country). Same BS as usual...

I'm sure the Israeli's have had a chance to examine closely Cypress S-300 system since both nations are very close. Likewise Israeli's have been known to exercise with the Greek Army, operators of the Tor-1M. I would be certain Israel already has countermeasures for these systems. Only two batteries of S-300 won't buy much coverage, and how many rounds will this deal supply? Israel will shortly have 200F-16I's in service, in addition to the 75 or so F-15's they operate and the dozen or more tankers converted from surplus 707-300's to full KC-135 spec.