Erdogan says Russian S-400s delivery could be brought forward
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the delivery of Turkey’s disputed Russian S-400 missile defense systems could be earlier than initially planned, Hurriyet daily reported on Wednesday.
Ankara’s purchase of the S-400s risks US sanctions and has further strained already tense relations with Washington.
US officials are concerned over the incompatibility of the S-400s with NATO military hardware as well as Ankara’s increasingly close relationship with Russia.
“The S-400 missile defense system was to be delivered in July, maybe we will bring this forward,” Erdogan told Turkish journalists on board his plane after a Russia visit, the newspaper said.
Erdogan was in Moscow on Monday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with the S-400 purchase and joint coordination in Syria on the agenda.
“This step that we have taken for our country’s security neither targets a third country nor does it give our sovereign rights over to a third country,” Erdogan said.
In a bid to stop Turkey purchasing the S-400s, the US has offered to sell the US Patriot system but Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said this was not guaranteed.
“If the United States does not want to sell the Patriot, tomorrow we can buy a second S-400, or another defense system,” he said during an interview with NTV broadcaster.
Read More: Times of Israel