REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BEIRUT - Syrian President Bashar Assad said the regime has received the first shipment of sophisticated Russian anti-aircraft missiles, while the main Western-backed opposition group announced Thursday that it will not participate in peace talks — a double blow to international efforts to end the country's devastating civil war.

Assad's comment on the arrival of the long-range S-300 air defense missiles in Syria, which was made in an interview with Lebanon's Hezbollah-owned TV station, Al-Manar TV, could further ratchet up tensions in the region and undermine any to hold any peace talks. 

"Syria has received the first shipment of Russian anti-aircraft S-300 rockets," the TV quoted Assad as saying on Thursday morning. The Syrian leader added: "All our agreements with Russia will be implemented and parts of them have already been implemented."

The shipment of the missiles, if confirmed, comes just days after the European Union lifted an arms embargo on Syria, paving way for individual countries of the 27-member bloc to send weapons to rebels fighting to topple Assad's regime.

The developments raise fears of an arms race — not just between Assad's forces and the opposition fighters battling to topple his regime, but also in the wider Middle East.

Israel has carried out several airstrikes in Syria in recent months that are believed to have destroyed weapon shipments bound for Hezbollah, the Lebanese Shiite group that along with Iran and Russia is a staunch Assad ally. It is not clear whether Israeli warplanes entered Syrian airspace in these attacks.

The S-300s have a range of up to 200 kilometers (125 miles) and the capability to track and strike multiple targets simultaneously. Syria already possesses Russian-made air defenses, and Israel is believed to have used long-distance bombs fired from Israeli or Lebanese airspace.

Ikuti Whatsapp Channel Republika