Satellite images showed that Iran had built a new site for S-300 missiles and advanced radar equipment at an air base at the civilian-military Mashhad airport, while a Western military site said the deployment of missiles was always linked to the protection of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
According to a report by the Swiss military site Offser on Wednesday, Iranian forces set up Russian advanced S-300 missiles on three occasions between 2017 and 2018, coinciding with visits to the Iranian leader, who controls the reins of power.
According to the Swiss site, the company Khatam Prophets of the Revolutionary Guards built the new site for missiles on the northern side of the airport.
The rockets were first deployed between June and July 2017, when Khamenei was speaking to the city's judiciary.
The second time came between March and April 2018, during a meeting between Khamenei and the Council of Experts on Newruz.
The third deployment took place between July and August this year, wh
en Khamenei attended a religious ceremony to remove the dust from the tomb of Imam Reza.
The deployment of rockets on the occasion of the Iranian leader's visit raises questions about the use of these sophisticated and expensive weapons by the Revolutionary Guards to protect the head of the regime, without any strategic necessity or threat to the country.
According to satellite images, the components that were observed included two launch pads and a number of radars.
In all deployments, the missile system components were moved from its position at Mehrabad International Airport, west of Tehran, via the highway to Mashhad.
In addition to Mehrabad airport, there are other active sites in Iran hosting the sophisticated S-300 missiles, including Bushehr, Khafar Shahr and Isfahan.
Mashhad is located in the northeast, about 75 km and 170 km from the borders of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan, respectively. The range of advanced S-300 air defense missiles is about 200 kilometers.
Iran received the system from Russia in July 2016, under a deal worth $ 1 billion, after long delay in delivery due to US pressure on Moscow.
Tehran has spent billions of dollars on arming and developing missile systems at a time when the country is experiencing a crushing economic crisis, a collapse in the local currency and popular anger against the regime's policies, especially in the context of wasting the country's resources in conflicts and arming terrorist militias abroad.
