The Hill:
The State Department said Monday it is concerned about Iran state media reports that the country has deployed an advanced missile defense system around its Fordow underground uranium facility.
The S-300 surface-to-air missile system was sold to Iran by Russia over U.S. objections, after an international accord was reached last July that lifted sanctions on Iran in exchange for limits to its nuclear program.
“We’ve seen the reports of this deployment. Obviously, that’s of concern to us because we have long objected to the sale of Iran — of these kinds of capabilities. So as we get more information, obviously, we’re going to stay in close consultation with partners going forward,” said State Department press secretary John Kirby said at a briefing.
Kirby said Secretary of State John Kerry did not raise the issue during talks with Russia’s foreign minister last week, but said, “it is an issue that the secretary has been very clear … about in the past on numerous occasions.”
Russia had canceled a contract to deliver the systems to Iran in 2010, under pressure from the West, but announced it was reviving the contract in April 2015, as reaching a final nuclear deal appeared imminent.
On Sunday, Iran state TV reported that the S-300 was deployed at the Fordow facility, about 60 miles south of Tehran, according to Reuters. Since the signing of the deal in January, Iran has stopped enriching uranium there.
