On September 14, Russia fired seven SS-N-30A Kalibr cruise missiles at ISIS targets in Syria’s eastern Deir el-Zor province. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, two Russian submarines stationed in the Mediterranean Sea, the Velikiy Novgorod (B-268) and Kolpino (B-271), fired the missiles from a submerged position and they traveled between 500 and 670 km...
On September 12, 2017, Russia successfully tested its silo-based, solid-fuel RS-24 Yars intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, located north of Moscow. It successfully flew to the Kura Military Range in Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the test was necessary in order to “reaffirm the reliability” of the missiles,...
Turkey announced September 12, 2017, that it has signed a deal with Russia to purchase the Russian S-400 surface-to- air missile defense system. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told the press that a deposit has already been paid. Though the prospective purchase was made public several months ago, this announcement is the first time Erdogan has...
On September 4-7, units from Russia, Armenia, Belarus, and Kyrgyzstan drilled together as part of the Combat Commonwealth 2017 CIS joint air defense exercise. Over 1,500 soldiers participated and multiple systems were tested, including the Pantsir S-1, S-300, and S-400 Triumf. The drill reportedly included countering a variety of targets, from unmanned aerial vehicles to ballistic...
On September 5, the Russian frigate the Admiral Essen (751) in the Mediterranean launched a salvo of three Kalibr cruise missiles at Islamic State militants in Syria as part of the Syrian army’s push to break the Islamic State’s three year siege of Deir al-Zor. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the missiles destroyed command...
On July 14, Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik announced Turkey had signed a “cooperation agreement” with the Eurosam Consortium to acquire and coproduce the SAMP/T Aster 30 surface-to-air missile (SAM) defense system. The two-stage deal would first let Turkey import SAMP/T systems to bolster the country’s integrated air defense system, and then share technology with...
On July 5, Russian Tupolev-95MS “Bear” long-range strategic bombers fired Kh-101 cruise missiles to destroy three Islamic State ammunition depots and a command facility near the town of Aqirbat on the border of the Syrian provinces of Homs and Hama. The Kh-101 missiles flew 1,000 km before reaching their targets. The Russian Defense Ministry added...
Moscow and Ankara agreed on the delivery of the S-400 air defense system to Turkey, Russian presidential aide Vladimir Kozhin said June 29. Russian news agency RIA Novosti quoted Kozhin as saying, “The contract has been agreed upon. The issue on the loan has not been resolved yet.” Kozhin added that Russia sees “no obstacles”...
On June 26, the Russian state run news agency TASS released a statement from the Minister of Defense stating that a Borey-class ballistic missile submarine Yuri Dolgoruky successfully test fired an 3M14 Bulava (SS-N-32) submarine launched ballistic missile (SLBM). The nuclear submarine launched the missile from an underwater position northwest of Russia in the Barents Sea and reportedly...
On June 3, Russia announced it had successfully tested its hypersonic missile, Zircon. Analysts report that the Zircon missile can fly at 7,400 km/hr, or six-times the speed of sound. Russian news agencies emphasized the missile’s ability to to counter Western missile defense systems, arguing that the Zircon “makes Western defenses obsolete.” Russian sources indicate...
