Russia in Talks With Turkey Over Resale of S-400 System to Gulf States

Washington has made removing the Russian air defences a key condition for any sale of F-35 jets to Ankara

Russia is in talks with Turkey over the possible transfer of Turkish-owned Russian S-400 air defence systems to an unnamed Gulf country, the Kremlin revealed on Friday.

The disclosure followed a report by the Turkish outlet Hurriyet, which said Ankara might resell the Russian missile systems to a Gulf state in a bid to persuade Washington to lift the sanctions imposed after their purchase.

Asked about the possible resale and whether Moscow had been consulted, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called it an extremely sensitive issue, adding that Russia had been in contact with the Turkish side over the matter and would continue those contacts.

Ankara moves to clear the sanctions

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told TRT that Ankara was taking steps to address the US measures imposed under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), and expected a swift resolution. Fidan said NATO’s burden-sharing principle had matured into an implementable policy, describing defence-industry agreements within the alliance as being of tremendous importance to the future of Turkey’s own defence sector.

The question resurfaced after US President Donald Trump raised the prospect of selling F-35 fighter jets to Turkey during this week’s NATO summit, reviving Ankara’s long-running pursuit of the aircraft. The sale had been blocked after Washington sanctioned its NATO ally in 2020 over the S-400 purchase, removing Turkey from the F-35 procurement and manufacturing programme.

Trump singles out Ankara

At the summit, Trump lavished praise on Turkey while berating other NATO members, saying Washington enjoyed a better relationship with Ankara and that Turkey had proved, in many ways, more loyal than other allies once thought dependable. Asked directly about a possible F-35 sale, he said only that it was a decision the United States was going to make.

Reference: The Cradle