Friday 17 April 2015 - 16:04
Story Code : 160492
Russian S-300 missile sale to Iran may violate US sanctions - White House
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) While Russias proposed sale ofthe advanced S-300 air defense missile system toIran does not violate UNSECURITY Council resolutions, the United States needs more details todetermine if the sale could violate US sanctions againstIran, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said onThursday.
The transfer ofthis defensive weapons system [S-300] is not prohibited byUNSECURITY Council resolutions, and we would need toknow more aboutthe specificPROGRAM todetermine the impact it would have onUS sanctions programs, Earnest said ata press briefing.
This week, the United States has expressed concern overRussias announcement that it would sell an advanced version ofits S-300 air defense missile system toTehran, arguing the sale would create instability inthe Middle East.
In addition toUN sanctions, the United States maintains aNUMBERofsanctions againstIran related toballistic missiles, support forterrorism and violations ofhuman rights.On April 13, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree lifting the ban onthe sales ofS-300 air defense systems toIran two weeks afterTehran and world powers agreed ona landmark deal tocurb Iran's nuclear program. In return, Iran will see sanctions againstit phased outover time, including the arms embargo.
Putin said onThursday that inthe context ofSaudi Arabia and Arab GulfCOUNTRIES military build-up and operations inYemen, the missile sale toIran would prevent hostilities frombreaking out.
Moscow and Tehran agreed onthe delivery offive S-300 systems in2007. In 2010, then-President Dmitry Medvedev put the deal onhold afterthe UN Security Council introduced an embargo onarms deliveries toIran overfears the Islamic Republic was developing nuclear weapons.
On Thursday, Iranian Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan said the deal could be closed bythe end of2015.
By Sputnik News
# Tags
