BRUSSELS (Sputnik) — Russia’s decision to lift an embargo on S-300 missile defense system deliveries to Iran will not affect the international negotiations on Tehran’s nuclear program, Catherine Ray, an official representative of EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, said Monday.
"We took note of the Russian decision to ship some air defense systems to Iran. This is not a new issue, we expressed our concern regarding this decision, which was already announced a few weeks ago, if I am not mistaken. The negotiations are still ongoing and we do not believe that will affect the ongoing negotiation; political directors will meet again this week in New York to try to achieve the final deal as it has been agreed by everyone by the end of June."
In 2007, Russia and Iran signed an $800-million deal for delivery of five S-300 missile defense systems. Moscow suspended the deal after UN Security Council issued an arms embargo on Tehran amid suspicions that it was trying to create nuclear weapons.
Two weeks after Tehran and the P5+1 group worked out a framework agreement ensuring the peaceful nature of the Iranian nuclear program, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree lifting the ban on the sale of S-300 to Iran.
