Russia will not deliver a previously agreed order of 40 Yak-130 fighter planes to Syria, according to a senior Russian official.
Russian news agency RIA has quoted deputy director of the Russian service for military co-operation Vyacheslav Dzirkaln as saying "while the situation in Syria is unstable, there will be no new deliveries of arms there."
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"In the current situation talking about deliveries of airplanes to Syria is premature," Dzirkaln said speaking to journalists at this year’s Farnborough Air Show in the UK.
The order refers to a shipment of 40 Yak-130 fighter planes agreed between Syria and a Russian arms manufacturer in late 2011.
The reports indicate a change of direction for Moscow, after the Russian Foreign Minister said on June 9 that his country would only send weapons to Syria under previously signed contracts.
According to official CAST estimates, Syria has signed arms contracts for about $5.5 billion with Syria since 2006.
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By GlobalDataRussia came under strong criticism last month from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton after it was alleged that a shipment of Mi-25 attack helicopters were on the way from Russia to Syria.
Russia responded that the helicopters were not new but had been overhauled under a previous agreement.
"As already stated, no new deliveries are being made to Syria of Russian military helicopters," the Foreign Ministry statement said, adding "all military-technical cooperation with Syria is limited to defensive weapons."
The Yakovlev Yak-130 is a subsonic jet aircraft developed by Yakovlev for the Russian government in 1991.
