Russia is currently modernizing the S-300 missile defense system for Iran and hopes it will able to deliver the system to Tehran, the head of Russia�s largest arms exporters said Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) � In 2007, Russia and Iran signed a $800-million deal for the delivery of five S-300 battalions. In 2011, Iran sued Rosoboronexport in the Geneva Arbitration Court after Moscow suspended the contract, citing the UN Security Council-imposed arms embargo against Tehran.

In April 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree allowing the contract to proceed shortly after the P5+1 group of international negotiators and Iran had reached a framework nuclear agreement to remove all economic sanctions against Tehran in exchange for its pledge to cut back on uranium enrichment and the number of centrifuges in the country.

�The completion of the contract on the S-300 missile system for Iran was suspended and we�ve been given the order to renew work and as the executors, we are doing this, but much time has gone by and the S-300 system has changed so we�re working on the modernization of the system,� Rosoboronexport General Director Anatoly Isaikin told journalists.

Isaikin said that he was sure the contract would now be honored.

�The result will be positive, there are currently no conditions that would hamper the contract from being fulfilled,� Isaikin said.

He emphasized that Russia delivers weapons only to the government of Iraq and the contract also stipulates the prohibition of transferring arms to other parties.

�We have delivered and will deliver arms to only the central government of Iraq. The contract stipulates a ban on transferring weaponry into other hands or to other countries. We are completely sure that the Iranian and Syrian governments are holding to the conditions in the contracts,� Isaikin added.

Iran will retract its $4-billion suit against Russia over S-300 missile systems that were not delivered earlier. �We have agreed with Iran on retracting the suit,� Isaikin added.
By Sputnik News