Posted on 02/14/2006 4:58:49 PM PST by Tailgunner Joe
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.
Would intercepting the shipment be considered an act of war?
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.
We can bomb them back to the Stone Age from well above 20,000 feet.
You would be talking about doing something that would force Russia to act.
If they did not it would show that Russia is incapable of fighting.
That alone would make Russia do whatever it takes to strike back.
Not a good idea.. but 20,000 feet hardly makes a difference when you are talking about B-2's.
Did the cold war ever end?
It appears not.
Can't we just pay Russia NOT to sell arms and nuclear reactor equipment to Iran and other lunatic states? Never mind, they would probably take our money and sell the weapons and equipment under the table too.
I'd say it slowly started again in 1990.
Nope... it just became a helluva lot more 'hot'.
Truly, I see bad mojo for the world in the relatively near future.
Funny I think the worst thing that ever happend is that damn wall came tumbling down and the commies, the KGB,GRU and all their thugs managed to escape or get reassigned to America.
While it was up it ..at least it kept them in...
Of course given the numbers of enemy agents of all stripes freely roaming our country ..thanks to our politicans..
what's the diff?
imo
...But Russia is our friend.
With friends like that...
Oops I thought they were getting a Walmart (Sams club)
500 Tomahawks aimed at the nuke sites don't care!
I pray to God that this is all some way for Russia (whom Bush trusts) to extract $$ out of Iran in exchange for hardware that won't do sh~t to our ability to do what we need to do.
Why was this thread moved to the Smoky Backroom? Did the mods jump the gun? I don't see any flame war... yet...
Tor M-1s are short-range SAMs. They are designed to work with long-range C300 (or newer C400) for complex defense.
Russia categorically refused to sell C300 to Iran. Without C300 Tor M-1s are very inefficient.
russia never miss a chance to support our enemies.
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