Final stage for the delivery of Russian S-400 missiles to Saudi Arabia.

Negotiations for the supply of Russian S-400 surface-to-air defense missile systems to Saudi Arabia are on the final stage, the two countries discuss about the details of the technical and logistical aspects, Saudi Ambassador to Russia Raed bin Khaled Qrimli told TASS on Monday, February 19, 2018.

TEL Transporter Erector Launcher mobile unit of S-400 air defense missile system (Picture source otvaga2004.ru)

Earlier, Russian president’s military technical cooperation aide Vladimir Kozhin said in an interview with the Russian newspaper Kommersant daily that documents on S-400 deliveries to Saudi Arabia had been signed, with all the parameters agreed.

On November 2011, it wa announced thet Saudi Arabia discusses the possibility to purchase Russian-made S-400 air defense missile system, NATO Code SA-21 Growler. The contract for the delivery of S-400 to Saudi Arabia was signed in May 2017, has announced the press office of Russia’s Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation at the Dubai Airshow in November 2017.

The Russian S-400 is now one of the most popular air defense system in the world. On 13 April 2015, the chief executive of the Russian state-run arms trader Rosoboronexport has confirmed that China secured a contract with his company for the purchase of the S-400 air defense system. India, Qatar and recently Turkey, have also selected the S-400 as future air defense system.

The Russian presidential aide for military and technical cooperation also said that Russia and Saudi Arabia were discussing other contracts. In particular, talks on the delivery of Russian-made firearms and the feasibility of their production in Saudi Arabia are currently in progress.

The S-400 has been in service with the Russian Armed Forces since 2007. The system can destroy aerial threats at a range of up to 400 kilometers and tactical ballistic targets flying at a speed of 4.8 km/s at a distance of up to 60 kilometers.

The S-400 radar systems can detect aerial targets at a distance of up to 600 kilometers. The surface-to-air missiles 48N6E3 used by the S-400 launcher units can hit aerial targets at altitudes from 10,000 to 27,000 meters and ballistic threats at altitudes from 2,000 to 25,000 meters.