Laser Raman spectroscopy is a powerful instrument commonly used for detection of bulk and trace amounts of explosives. The work carried out in this paper is divided into two phases; the first phase is to propose a real time standoff explosive detection and identification system based on Raman spectroscopy that can be deployed in static checkpoints. The measurement is performed for samples placed in contact and at distances up to 1 m in ambient light conditions. The second phase is to propose a novel sophisticated signal processing and pattern recognition techniques for accurate identification and classification of the investigated materials.