MOSCOW, January 16 (RIA Novosti) - Russia has completed deliveries of Tor-M1 anti-aircraft missile systems to Iran, the defense minister said Tuesday.
"We have supplied modern anti-aircraft short-range missile systems under a contract. Iran is not under any sanctions," Sergei Ivanov said, adding that Moscow will continue to develop military and technical cooperation with Tehran.
Russia undertook to supply 29 Tor-M1 missile systems to Iran under a $700 million contract signed at the end of 2005. The United States protested the deal, which it feared could bolster the military capabilities of the Islamic Republic, classified by Washington as a "rogue state" and part of "the axis of evil."
Russia has insisted that the contract for the delivery of the Tor-M1 missiles to Iran was concluded in line with international law, and that the system is intended for defense purposes only.
Last December, the UN Security Council adopted a revised version of a resolution to punish Tehran for its refusal to its halt uranium enrichment, but Russia managed to uphold its economic interests and ensured the implementation of its earlier signed contracts with Iran, including on the construction of a light-water reactor in Bushehr and the delivery of the Tor-M1 and S-300 air defense systems.
The Tor-M1, developed by the Russian company Almaz-Antei, is a high-precision missile system designed to destroy aircraft, manned or unmanned, and cruise missiles flying at an altitude of up to 10 kilometers (6 miles). It was introduced at the Russian aerospace show MAKS in 2005. Each system is equipped with 8 short-range missiles, associating radars, fire control systems and a battery command post.
