Russia will sell SAMs to Iran

MOSCOW, Feb. 13 (UPI) -- Despite the ongoing controversy about Iran's nuclear program, Russia intends to sell Tehran up to 30 Tor M-1 surface-to-air missiles in a deal estimated to be worth up to $700 million.

Tor M-1 missiles are short-range, surface-to-air missiles. The system is able to identify up to 48 targets and fire at two targets simultaneously at a height of up to 20,000 feet. They are already used by several other armed forces, including China.

Analysts believe that the Tor M-1s will be deployed at Iran's Isfahan nuclear research center and around the Bushehr reactor that Russia is building for Iran.

Isfahan has been mentioned in media reports as one of the targets that the U.S. military might seek to destroy if th United States was to attempt a pre-emptive strike against Iran's nuclear program.

Russian Federal Military-Technical Cooperation Service Director Mikhail Dmitriyev told journalists, "We concluded a contract for the supply of air-defense systems to Iran and there is no reason not to fulfill it."

The Tor M-1 deal is the largest since Russia in 2000 unilaterally withdrew from an agreement with the U.S. administration to restrict its military sales to Iran.

NewKerala.com reported that Dmitriyev dismissed reports in the Russian media that Moscow was discussing additional supplies of more sophisticated S-300 air-defense missiles with Tehran.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov stresses that the Tor M-1 is solely a defensive system and that Russia's sale of the system to Iran does not violate Russia's international obligations.

Dmitriyev gave no date for when the Tor M-1s would be shipped to Iran.

Dmitriyev told reporters that Russia's arms exports in 2005 were worth $6.1 billion, with Rosoboronexport hoping for 2006 sales of $7 billion.