Russia: S-300 anti-air missiles will deter “hotheads” from Syria

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said Monday that his government would go ahead with deliveries of the S-300 anti-aircraft missiles to the Assad regime, calling them a "stabilizing factor" that could dissuade "some hotheads" from entering the conflict. He also condemned the EU’s decision to end its arms ban for Syrian rebels as damaging the prospects for convening the international conference for a political solution of the Syrian conflict. In Paris, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry met to discuss convening their jointly-sponsored conference early next month in Geneva but did not announce a date or any other specific plans.