Egypt would like to purchase S-300 air defense missile system from Russia 0703143.

Details of the February deals with Moscow have not yet been confirmed, but Egyptian press reports indicate that Russian Mi-35 attack helicopters and Mi-17 multipurpose helicopters are part of the package. Egypt already has nearly 100 of these aircraft and the older Soviet-era Mi-8 helicopters, which have troop-transport, cargo, signals-intelligence, and attack variants, the latter equipped with 23 mm guns and the capacity to carry 500 kg bombs and antitank guided missiles.

According the Washington Institute Website, Egypt is reportedly seeking to acquire air-defense systems from Moscow, which could include S-300 air defense missile systems.

If Egypt does in fact intend to procure game-changing systems such as the S-300 and the Kornet, Washington should warn Cairo of the risks such an acquisition would pose to U.S. security assistance and the broader bilateral relationship.

The S-300 (NATO code SA-10 Grumble) is a series of long range surface-to-air missile systems designed and manufactured in Russia by the Company Almaz-Antey.

The latest variant, the S-300PMU2 “Favorit” (NATO code SA-20B Gargoyle B) mobile multichannel ADMS (Air Defense Missile System) is designed to provide highly efficient defense for the most important political, administrative, economic, and military facilities against air attacks; attacks by strategic cruise, air ballistic, tactical, and theater ballistic missiles and other air offense systems in difficult tactical environments and in situations with heavy radio jamming.

The development of the new missile for S-300 PMU2, which began in the early 1990s, required numerous calculations and tests, during which the missile demonstrated its capability to intercept targets at a range of 200 kilometers and the required efficiency in destroying various kinds of targets.