MOSCOW [MENL] -- Russia is marketing what defense officials describe as a
missile shield and based on the S-300 anti-aircraft system.The system is termed the S-300V and officials said it can protect
military facilities and troops against ballistic missiles better than the
U.S. Patriot batteries. The officials have been promoting the system in such
countries as Egypt, Iran and Syria.Officials said both Egypt and Iran are interested in purchasing the
system as part of efforts to establish a missile shield. The issue was
discussed between Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Russian President
Vladimir Putin last month in Moscow.Russia is also offering to develop a missile defense system for India.
Officials said a full proposal would be issued over the next few weeks."This is a large and very complicated project," Russian Deputy Prime
Minister Ilya Klebanov said.Russian analysts said Moscow does not have a missile defense system to
sell. They said Moscow is expected to offer a network of such systems as the
mobile S-300 and the short-range Tor M1 to stop incoming ballistic missiles.Moscow has been heavily promoting various models of the S-300. Officials
said the first such anti-aircraft systems are expected to be deployed in
Armenia by Sept. 1 near the Turkish border.
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