Russia, Turkey Agree On S-400 Missile Delivery

ANKARA --- Moscow and Ankara agreed on the delivery of the S-400 air defense system to Turkey, Russian presidential aide Vladimir Kozhin said Thursday.

"The contract has been agreed upon. The issue on the loan has not been resolved yet," Kozhin was quoted as saying by Russian news agency RIA Novosti.

Kozhin said Russia saw "no obstacles" to the delivery of the air missile defense system to Turkey in connection with its membership to NATO.

The S-400 is Russia’s next-generation air defense system. It can carry three types of missiles capable of destroying targets including ballistic and cruise missiles.

It can track and engage up to 300 targets at the same time and has an altitude ceiling of 27 kilometers (17 miles).

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ANKARA --- Negotiations between Turkey and Russia for the purchase of S-400 missile defense systems are near completion, Parliamentary Defense Committee head Yusuf Beyazıt recently told Daily Sabah, adding that Turkey's efforts in developing a fully local defense industry for the past 15 years have also been gradually paying off.

"According to the latest information I gathered, the negotiations are at the final stage," Beyazıt said, adding that Ankara aims to transfer the technology.

"What is significant here is that Turkey ensures the security of its soil," he said, asserting that a possible S-400 deal would not affect Turkey's relations with NATO.

Accusing NATO of not quite helping Turkey in its fight against terrorist groups such as Daesh and the PKK, Beyazıt recalled recent Daesh shelling and missile attacks in the Turkish border provinces of Hatay, Kilis and Gaziantep.

On top of that, Beyazıt asserted that some of Turkey's allies have put obstacles in the way of its counterterrorism fight. "Our allies left us alone in Operation Euphrates Shield. Some of them put hurdles in our way rather than support us. Germany, for example, withdrew its missile defense system stationed in Malatya [in eastern Turkey] at a time when PKK and Daesh terrorism was at its peak," he said.

Beyazıt said that Turkey is one of the most important member states in NATO, but countered that Ankara prioritizes its national security and the future of its citizens.

Apart from the S-400 negotiations with Russia, Beyazıt said that Turkey also has "very close cooperation" with the United Kingdom and Pakistan in terms of the defense industry. (end of excerpt)

Click here for the full story, on the Daily Sabah website.

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