S-300 missile systems (Photo: Military Forum)Israel To Press Russia Not To Sell Air Defences To Iran
-- The Telegraph
-- The Telegraph
The Israeli prime minister will press Russian President Dmitry Medvedev not to sell anti-aircraft defences to Iran amid growing speculation the Jewish state will bomb Iran's nuclear facilities.
Ehud Olmert, on his final foreign trip as prime minister before a new coalition government is confirmed, flew to Moscow to urge Mr Medvedev not to sell weapons to "irresponsible elements".
It is feared Israel will see the proposed sale of a sophisticated version of the S-300 surface-to-air missile system as a reason to expedite plans for an attack on Iran.
"We will remind them again of matters that trouble us greatly," Mr Olmert said.
As East-West relations have deteriorated in the aftermath of Russia's brief war with Georgia in August, fears have mounted that Moscow could choose to goad Washington by selling Iran a version of the S-300.
Considered at least as sophisticated as the American Patriot, the S-300 can simultaneously track 100 different targets and is capable of shooting down aircraft over a range of over 90 miles and altitudes of up to 90,000 feet.
The establishment of so powerful a system would make it much harder to bomb Iran's atomic installations, leading some security analysts to predict that Israel could launch a pre-emptive attack if Tehran acquired the missiles.
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My Comment: This article contradicts RIA -Novosti's report that Russia will not sell an advanced anti-aircraft system to Iran. Hmmmm .... what's happening here.