Russia has deployed its new S-400 missile defense system in Syria — showing off its newest military hardware for potential buyers, but also creating a mammoth threat to Israel’s air superiority.
The system, installed in the Syrian port city of Latakia, can track and shoot down anything in the sky over a 250-mile (400 kilometer) range.
That means it threatens Israel as far as Ben Gurion International Airport, all of northern Israel and most of its central region, including Petah Tikva Ramat HaSharon, Herzliya, Kfar Saba, Netanya, Hadera, Zichron Ya’akov… you get the picture.
It also means that Da’esh (ISIS) terrorists may get their hands on the system if for some reason Russia completely pulls out of Syria, and the Iranians don’t maintain iron-clad control over the system — or if they or one of their proxy terror groups choose to share it with Da’esh in the interests of targeting the nation’s southern neighbor.
To further complicate matters, Russia has plans to sell the system to Iran for its own use on its own soil. Iran, the nation that wants to “wipe Israel off the map,” has recently developed an intercontinental ballistic missile with a range that can reach the Jewish State and which is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.
In addition, Russia has added to its list of buyers China, India, Venzuela and Algeria, according to Russia’s Sputnik News, quoted by the Independent Media Review Analysis (IMRA).
It appears that Russia’s Syrian campaign may have been more of testing ground and showcase for Moscow’s military weaponry and ordnance than anything else. After all, Da’esh is not wiped out, and peace is not yet in place. Assad is still in position but the country is falling apart.
Of all of the players in the Syrian drama, Russia came out with the most profit. “We are working seven days a week because of the S-400 missile systems,” a member of the Globus design bureau told Gazeta.ru. The S-300 and S-400 systems are built by Almaz-Antei, which was force to open a new production plant due to the skyrocketing demand.
Russian President Vladimir Putin opened the new production facility in Nizhny Novgorod. Another plant was opened in Kirov in February by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin.
Ruslan Pukhov, director of the Center of Strategic Analyses and Technology, told Gazeta.ru, “China tops the list of S-400 buyers, followed by India and now also by Venezuela, Algeria and Iran.
Russian officials explained the foreign interest in the S-400 system, saying that, unlike its S-300 predecessor, it can also engage ballistic targets.
“It is one thing when you deal with an advanced U.S. ballistic missile, and quite another when it is a less sophisticated one launched by Iran, China or North Korea,” Pukhov said.