Turkey Plans to Sell Russian S-400 Systems to Gulf States
Turkey is preparing to sell its Russian-made S-400 air defense systems to a Gulf country, hoping for the lifting of US sanctions and reinstatement in the F-35 program.
Turkey plans to get rid of its Russian-made S-400 air defense systems by selling them to one of the Persian Gulf states, the Turkish newspaper Hürriyet reported on Friday. According to sources, the buyer could be the United Arab Emirates (UAE) or Qatar. The newspaper stated that the parties have resolved the last differences, and the deal is expected to be announced as early as today.
In exchange for the sale, the US has promised to lift the sanctions imposed on Turkey after the purchase of the systems in 2017 and to reinstate Turkey's participation in the F-35 fighter jet program. According to Bloomberg, Ankara is seeking Russia's permission for the sale and approached Moscow before the NATO summit held in Ankara this week.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, commenting on the issue, called it "extremely sensitive." He confirmed that Russia has already had contacts with Turkey on the matter and they will continue.
