TEHRAN – Iran’s defense minister has said that the home-made version of the sophisticated S-300 missile system, dubbed Bavar-373, will be ready for use after it passes final operational tests.

“The full battlefield operational tests of Bavar-373 system have been scheduled for May 23,” Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan said in an interview with Fars news agency on Sunday.

He said the missile system has undergone three tests out of five, adding that the fourth, which was due to be held in the calendar month of Esfand (February 19 - March 20), has been postponed due to technical glitches.

Bavar-373 is a domestically built long-range mobile air defense system which was developed after the UN Security Council passed a resolution banning the sale of advanced weapons to the Islamic Republic, which in turn suspended Iran’s purchase of the Russian S-300.

However, the restriction was lifted last year after Iran and six world powers signed a nuclear deal that restricted some aspects of Tehran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. 

Saturday, Iran successfully tested the newly-purchased S-300 surface-to-air missile defense system.

The test-firing was conducted with the aim of analyzing the performance of the S-300 system, assessing the capability of the system in engaging targets with a low radar cross section and ballistic missile threats as well as the ability of Iranian officers to use the system.

MH/PA