Iranian specialists have already been trained to operate Russian S-300 air defense systems, Interfax-AVN reports with reference to Commander of the Iranian air defense base Khatam al-Anbia, Brigade General Farzad Esmaili, and Iranian mass media.

"The base’s experts have completed the training course and they are ready to operate Russian air defense systems," he said.

In April 2015 the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, lifted the ban on delivery of S-300 air defense systems to Iran. The contract for delivery of five divisions of S-300PMU-1 to Iran worth $800 million was signed in 2007. Three years later in summer 2010 UN Security Council approved the Resolution No. 1929 related to Iran. After that Dmitry Medvedev (former President of Russia) signed an order that put the contract on hold.

F. Esmaili assured that Iran is not going to use S-300 systems delivered by Russia for development of an indigenous analogue. "S-300 is the air defense system, which will be deployed in some regions of our country; we are not going to copy it," the General said.

Earlier Iranian Minister of Defense Hossein Dehghan said that Iran would test its own air defense system (Bavar-373) by March 2016. 

Development of this system was started in 2010 after Russia put the contract for delivery of S-300 systems to Iran on hold. The representative of Iranian High Command General Ahmad Reza Pourdastan said that Bavar-373 is more powerful and advanced system than Russian S-300. 

"Bavar-373 system was developed in Iran and may be a serious rival to S-300," he noted.