Second contract for S-400 to Turkey, Ankara does not confirm

By TOC

ANKARA ($1= Trukish Liras) — A representative of the Turkish Ministry of Defense did not confirm the information of the TASS agency, according to which Russia and Turkey have signed a second contract for the supply of the Russian anti-missile system S-400, Reuters reported on Tuesday.

Russia and Turkey discuss the supply of an additional batch of S-400 missile system
Photo credit: AFP

TASS reported on Tuesday that Ankara has signed another contract to buy S-400s. The parties concluded the first such agreement in 2017.

Shortly after, a representative of the Turkish Ministry of Defense said that the first agreement for the purchase of the Russian anti-missile defense system provided for the delivery of the system in two lots. “So we have no specific news worth reporting. The process [delivery of system components] continues and there are no new agreements,” the Turkish politician added.

As Reuters commented, any new military agreement between Moscow and Ankara would cause serious concern to the West as it seeks to isolate Moscow and preserve NATO unity in the face of Russian aggression against Ukraine.

Turkey received the first delivery of anti-missile systems from Russia in July 2019, with the deal expected to be worth around $2.5 billion. – reported the Reuters agency.

The United States has imposed sanctions on Ankara for its purchase of the S-400 in 2020, and the US Congress has also included clauses in the Pentagon budget providing for retaliatory measures against the Turkish authorities. In addition, Washington has blocked a contract for the purchase of F-35 fighter jets from the Turkish side.

American experts believe that the radars installed in Russian weapons will learn to spot and track the F-35 fighters, making their undetectability questionable. Also opposed to Turkey’s deal with Russia is NATO, whose commanders say Russian weapons are not compatible with the alliance’s military systems.

In late June, however, the White House reported that during a meeting with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan, US President Joe Biden thanked Ankara for helping Ankara free up Ukrainian grain exports and unblocking Finland’s membership and Sweden in NATO. The US leader has also started talks to sell modernized F-16 jets to Turkey.

***

Follow us everywhere and at any time. BulgarianMilitary.com has responsive design and you can open the page from any computer, mobile devices or web browsers. For more up-to-date news, follow our Google News, YouTube, Reddit, LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook pages. Subscribe to our Newsletter and read our stories in News360App in AppStore or GooglePlay or in FeedlyApp in AppStore or GooglePlay. Our standards: Manifesto & ethical princliples.