Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin made the remarks among reporters following Russia-Iran-Azerbaijan summit in Baku on Monday, adding “the implementation process for the S-300 delivery contract is underway and we have complied with the agreement.”
Russia had committed to delivering S-300 air defense systems to Iran under an 800-million-dollar deal in 2007, but the delivery was suspended under the pretext of UN sanctions against the Islamic Republic. In April 2015 and following the signing of Iran nuclear deal, President Putin signed a presidential decree on the long-overdue delivery of the systems to Iran.
“Tehran and Baku have requested for good Russian weaponry under the framework of defense cooperation and in line with combating common threats,” Rossiya Segodnya news agency quoted Rogozin as saying.
“You cannot respond to common threats against countries merely with expressing solidarity and holding meetings and political dialogues,” he said, “rather, one must strengthen reactions to existing threats by delivering arms. This is why Russia with its special reputation in manufacturing armaments is a favorite with countries such as Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan.”
He further referred to the topics discussed during the bilateral and trilateral meetings in Baku, saying “technical-military cooperation and the three countries’ security issues were also discussed in the meetings.”
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