Moscow. June 14. INTERFAX - Long-range S-300V4 air defense systems repelled an "enemy" air raid during exercises on the Kuril Islands, the Russian Defense Ministry reported.
"In the Eastern Military District with S-300V4 air defense units stationed on the Kuril Islands, a planned air defense training was conducted as part of the new training period," the report says.
It is reported that during the training, the air defense forces on duty received information about the violation of the air borders of Russia by a group of aircraft of a conditional enemy, after which the calculations of the S-300V4 anti-aircraft missile systems performed a search, identification and tracking of air targets that simulated an "enemy" air raid.
"During the training, training (electronic) launches were carried out on several dozen air targets," the ministry said.
S-300V4 (JSC "Concern of East Kazakhstan Region "Almaz-Antey") is a tracked vehicle complex. Refers to the air defense of the Ground Forces. The complex is the basis of a non-strategic missile defense grouping of troops, capable of hitting air targets at a range of over 350 km and altitudes of more than 30 km. One division is capable of simultaneously firing at 24 targets, while aiming up to 48 anti-aircraft guided missiles at them.
Japan claims the four southern islands of the Kuril Ridge - Iturup, Kunashir, Shikotan and Habomai, referring to the Treatise on Trade and Borders of 1855. Moscow's position is that the Southern Kuriles became part of the USSR following the results of World War II and Russian sovereignty over them, which has an international legal form, is beyond doubt.
In recent years, Russia has significantly increased its military grouping on the Kuril Islands.
In April 2019, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation announced the introduction of an air defense alert zone on the Kuril island of Kunashir. On December 1, 2020, the Eastern Military District reported that the Russian military had deployed the S-300V4 system on the Kuril Islands. The newspaper of the Pacific Fleet "Combat Watch" in the fall of 2016 wrote that Russia had placed new coastal missile systems "Bal" and "Bastion" on Iturup and Kunashir.
In August 2018, it was reported that modern multi-purpose Su-35 fighters were deployed at Yasny Airport on Iturup Island. The Russian military informed about the creation of an airfield on the Kuril island of Matua, which accepts light military transport aircraft. In 2016, it was reported about plans to create a base point for Russian Navy ships on Matua.
A machine-gun and artillery division has been deployed on the Kuril Islands. In May 2017, the VVO press service reported that the division was receiving new samples of weapons and military equipment, including drones.
