Moscow set to supply second batch of S-400 air defence systems to Turkey
Jul. 18, 2020
Russia is preparing to supply the second batch of the S-400 air defense systems to Turkey, Russian news agency Ria Novosti reported on Tuesday.
“Now we are working out a possible second part of the delivery,” the Kremlin website quoted Sergei Chemezov, the head of the Russian state conglomerate Rostec, as saying.
On Tuesday, Chemezov held a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin where the head of the state corporation spoke about an early supply the S-400 systems to Turkey.
In 2017, Turkey and Russia signed a deal to supply Ankara with S-400 air missile systems in a bid to deepen military ties between NATO member Turkey and Moscow.
The deal, worth $2.5 billion, has been met with opposition by NATO and the West over the system’s incompatibility with the alliance military system. Washington has demanded for Ankara to abandon the agreement, urging Turkey, in return, to purchase American Patriots.
Turkey took delivery of the first S-400 batch in July last year, prompting Washington to remove Turkey from the F-35 programme, in which Ankara was a manufacturer and buyer.
Ankara also faces U.S. sanctions over the move.
Turkey has yet to activate the system, but Turkish Presidency spokesman İbrahim Kalın in May said Ankara planned to go ahead with plans for activation despite a lengthy delay over the coronavirus pandemic.
Published at https://ahvalnews.com/turkey-s-400/moscow-set-supply-second-batch-s-400-air-defence-systems-turkey