Satellite images published on defense forums show the weapon system recently acquired by the Algerian armed forces
Images of several Russian-made S-350 surface-to-air missile systems installed on Algerian military bases have been disseminated in several forums and digital media close to Algiers’ spheres of influence.
The images would prove that the deliveries of the aerial interception system from the Almaz-Antey office would already be deployed in the installations of the Algerian National People’s Army after their purchase in 2020. Algiers became the first buyer of this weapons system in the part of the military escalation in which it is engaged with neighboring Morocco.
Doubts remain as to the origin of these images, which may have been leaked by the Algerian military command in order to show its weapon power in the face of Morocco which is concluding more and more defense contracts and agreements with Israel. to acquire the Iron Dome or the Barak-8, two air defense systems that compete with the S-350.
AP/TOUFIK DOUDOU – A tank circulates during a military parade to mark the 60th anniversary of Algeria’s independence, Tuesday July 5, 2022 in Algiers
The S-350 surface-to-air missile system is intended to bolster Algeria’s air defenses to intercept both manned aircraft and ballistic missiles. For these purposes, it has a range of 120 km against manned aircraft and 30 km for missiles. These ranges make the S-350 a medium range system. This category of the Algerian arsenal also includes the Buk-M2 and S-300 systems. The weapon system is carried on a BAZ-6909 artillery tractor vehicle and fires the same projectiles as the S-400 Triumph system, which is subject to US CAATSA sanctions. The S-350 comes with a radar system and a cockpit. They have the ability to be deployed within five minutes of arriving at their firing position. Images posted on the internet show military installations where at least five of these weapon systems are believed to be stationed.
According to the Algerian source MENA Defence, a portal analyzing the military capabilities of Maghreb countries, which is biased in favor of the Algerian point of view, the images show an Algerian Air Force military base. It could be the military airports of Boufarik or Blida, near the capital, in the north of the country. Further west, L’alat air base could be another option for the location of these systems. This airbase is located just 115 km from the Moroccan border, a distance within the range of the S-350 system. 15 km to the west is the Moroccan border town of Oujda.
The border area between the two countries is a military theater where tensions have increased since the breakdown of dialogue between the two governments in 2021. In early 2022, Morocco announced the creation of a new military zone in the east, in the edge of the border, while the international press speculates on the installation of a common military base with Israel, one of the red lines of Algiers.
PHOTO/ARCHIVO – Algerian Chief of General Staff Saïd Chengriha
Algeria’s chief of staff, led by Saïd Chengriha, has planned major military exercises near the border in response to Morocco. It should be recalled that, during the Algerian military reconfiguration of the 1990s, Chengriha, then at the head of the 3rd military region , based in Béchar, after having been commander-in-chief of the 8th armored division, was responsible for designing a new strategy of defense of the border, adapted to new forms of combat. This is how the current Chief of the General Staff set up the defense of the more than 1,500 km of border shared by Algeria and Morocco, most of which is made up of the vast Sahara desert.
Morocco and Algeria have increased their military spending by 12% and 8%respectively between 2020 and 2021, which, combined with a diplomatic climate heated by the Israeli-Moroccan agreements and Moroccan advances in the Sahara, suggests disastrous future prospects for the region. However, analysts rule out the possibility of an open war, or even a low-intensity war, between the two Maghreb powers. The prevailing idea is that any increase in hostilities involving military confrontation would be controlled by the European Union, which is committed to building a southern border as stable and secure as possible, in order to avoid experiences like that of Libya. , which had very negative consequences in terms of security, migration and the economy.
