Israel vows to make every effort to stop delivery of S-300s

JERUSALEM, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Israel needs to make every effort to stop the S-300 missile defense system from reaching countries where Israel Air Force (IAF) may need to fly, local daily the Jerusalem Post cited an IAF commander as saying Friday.

"The S-300 is a Russian-made surface-to-air missile system that is very advanced, with long ranges and many capabilities," Major General Ido Nehushtan told the newspaper in an exclusive interview.

"We need to make every effort to stop this system from getting to places where the IAF needs to operate or may need to operate in the future," he said, referring to Iran.

Russia and Iran signed a deal for the sale of the system several years ago, but according to latest Israeli assessments, it has yet to be delivered, the newspaper said.

The S-300 is one of the most advanced multi-target anti-aircraft missile systems in the world and has a reported ability to track up to 100 targets simultaneously while engaging up to 12 at the same time. It has a range of about 200 km and can hit targets at altitudes of 90,000 feet (27,432 meters).

Last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a secret visit to Moscow for talks, which according to some news reports focused on the possible sale of the S-300 to Iran.

Israel sees Iran as its arch-foe and has refused to rule out the possibility of launching military attacks against the Islamic republic's nuclear sites.

Israel's primary concern is Iran's purchase of the S-300, said local daily Ha'aretz, noting that should the missiles be deployed outside Iran's nuclear facilities, it would be very difficult for Israel to strike them.

Earlier this month, reports surfaced that the Mossad, Israeli intelligence agency, was involved in the interception of the missing Arctic Sea cargo ship in August. According to some versions, the ship was carrying S-300 missiles destined for Iran.

While vague in his answers on the Iranian threat, Nehushtan said in the interview that Israel "retains the right to defend itself" and that "ultimately, the job of the IAF is to provide security for the State of Israel and we know how to do this."

Israel prefers that the Iranian issue be handled by the international community, he said, adding that "We would be happy if these efforts are successful."