VIENNA (Sputnik) — The issues related to the existing contract on deliveries of S-300 air defense systems to Iran are time-consuming and could not be resolved in a few weeks, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Thursday.
"In my experience, it is a rather complex and time-consuming issue. It cannot be resolved in a matter of days or even weeks," Ryabkov told RIA Novosti ahead of a fresh round of Iran nuclear talks in Vienna.
Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree lifting the ban on S-300 air defense systems sales to Iran.
Putin's decision came two weeks after Tehran and the P5+1 group worked out a framework agreement to curb Iran's nuclear program. Under the deal, The United Sates, the European Union and the UN Security Council agreed to lift the sanctions against Iran, including the arms embargo.
In 2007, Russia and Iran signed an $800-million deal for delivery of five S-300s. However, Moscow suspended the deal after UN Security Council issued an arms embargo on Tehran amid suspicions that it was trying to create nuclear weapons.
