Russia made a significant move to improve its air defenses against the threat posed by Ukraine’s war with it when it transferred S-300 missiles from Middle East.
According to an Israeli satellite imaging firm, Russia shipped S-300 anti-aircraft weapons from Syria to a Russian port near Crimea as part of its attempt to strengthen its air defenses against the Ukrainian war.
ImageSat International captured images of the S-300 anti-aircraft gun battery at Masyaf (Syria) in April. The empty site was left behind on August 25, when the systems were moved to Tartous.
Separate images showed the battery parts on a Tartous dock between August 12-17, but they were gone by August 20. ISI concluded that the battery components had been transferred to a Russian ship, the Sparta II. It left Tartous for Novorossiysk.
Data from Refinitiv Eikon show the Sparta II is currently in Novorossiysk, having arrived via Turkey’s Dardanelles Strait.
The Russian defense ministry declined comment.
A 2011 uprising in Syria turned into war after the government responded violently to the country’s protest movement.
Russian intervention on the government’s behalf in 2015 changed the course of the conflict. Idlib is now the sole province that is largely held by the opposition.
If confirmed, this transfer of the S-300 would be a significant Russian move towards strengthening air defences near the theatre for war in Ukraine. In recent weeks, Russian forces have been subject to damaging attacks.
Eight Russian combat planes were damaged in an explosion at an airbase in Crimea this month. Ukraine declined to reveal the details of the attacks or how they were carried out.
ISI images revealed that the radar part of the S-300 batteries had been moved from the Masyaf Base to the Russian airbase Khmeimim off the Syrian coast, north-east of Tartous.
The company’s analysts said the size and weight of the radar component made it unsuitable for shipment by sea, and may require an airlift by an Ilyushin-76 aircraft from Khmeimim back to Russia.
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