MOSCOW, Feb. 16 (UPI) -- A fault in the command-and-control system on the S-300 missile defense system is causing delays in deliveries to Iran, Russian officials said.
Russia and Iran signed a contract in 2005 for the sale of the S-300 missile defense system, though developments on the delivery have since stalled.
Alexander Fomin, the first deputy director of Russia's Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation, said Moscow was working on resolving the technical issues that are behind the latest delays, Russia's state-run news agency RIA Novosti reports.
"A few technical faults have been detected in the radio-frequency band," he said. "We are currently fixing them."
Speculation circulated in 2009 that Moscow scrapped the arms deal to Iran following a decision from Washington to abandon plans to place its missile defense shields in Eastern Europe. The latest geopolitical row over Iran's controversial decision to increase its uranium enrichment activity was cited as the latest possible cause for the delay.
The S-300V system, NATO codename SA-12 Giant, can engage multiple targets simultaneously and shoot down aircraft and missiles at a range of around 100 miles.
