“They came, they went and they finished it”.
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On Saturday, Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan said the Russian aircraft fly to the Iranian airbase to be either refueled or get reloaded, noting that they use the base for more effective operation against terrorist groups in Syria.
He said there was “no written agreement” between the two countries and the “operational cooperation” was temporary and limited to refuelling. Moreover, Russia had been here, temporarily and now it is over, other than that they have not stationed here.
He referred to the Russian side’s move on sharing the news with public as “show off” which was done without prior notice.
“Naturally, the Russians are keen to show that they are a superpower and an influential country and that they are active in security issues in the region and the world”.
Use of the airbase near Hamedan, Iran, began a week ago, but the mission is complete, spokesman Bharam Ghasemi noted.
A still image, taken from video footage and released by Russia’s Defense Ministry on August 18, 2016, shows a Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber based at Iran’s Hamadan air base dropping bombs in the Syrian province of Deir al-Zour.
The statement comes a week after Russian Federation began using an airbase near the city of Hamadan to launch airstrikes in Syria in support of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Russian Federation initially held off on supplying the missile system to Tehran amid negotiations over Iran’s contested nuclear program.
Russian Federation said it struck targets linked to the jihadist Islamic State group and Al-Nusra Front, now known as Fateh al-Sham Front, in Aleppo, Deir Ezzor and Idlib.
Iran unveiled its new missile defence system, Bavar 373, on Monday, a system created to intercept cruise missiles, drones, combat aircraft and ballistic missiles.
Also Monday, U.N. humanitarian chief Stephen O’Brien urged all combatants in the battle for the Syrian city of Aleppo to agree to a 48-hour pause to allow desperately needed aid to be delivered, warning of a “humanitarian catastrophe unparalleled in the over five years of bloodshed” in Syria.
The Russian ambassador to Tehran, Levan Dzhagaryan, said nothing prevented a renewed use of Hamedan.
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“We have collaborated and will continue to collaborate with Syria and Russian Federation”.
