Israel Believes it will Face Russian Missiles

The Media Line (Link) (September 19, 2010)

Israeli defense officials have little doubt that their armed forces will come up against the sophisticated Russian missiles Moscow has agreed to sell to Syria.

On Friday, Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov announced that shipment of P-800 Yakhont supersonic cruise missiles pursuant to a deal signed in 2007 will go forward in defiance of American and Israeli requests to the contrary.

Israel argues that the weapons will undoubtedly end up in the hands of Hizbullah, the Iranian and Syrian terrorist proxy based in Lebanon. The P-800, which can be fired from land or sea, can carry a payload of 440 pounds over a distance of 186 miles at speeds of up to Mach 2.5. (13 miles/minute).