The Kremlin said Friday that Russia was discussing with Turkey the possible sale of Ankara’s Russian-made S-400 air defense systems, following reports that Turkey may dispose of them in an effort to return to the US-led F-35 fighter jet program.
“We have had contacts with the Turkish side on this matter, and we will continue our contacts with the Turkish side on this issue,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in response to a question from Agence France-Presse.
Peskov did not say whether Russia would buy back the systems, approve their transfer to a third country or agree to another arrangement.
His comments came two days after US President Donald Trump said at the NATO summit in Ankara that he had not decided whether to readmit Turkey to the F-35 program.
Trump’s remarks came a day after he said his administration would lift sanctions imposed on Turkey over its purchase of the Russian system.
Trump said he had not decided whether to readmit Turkey to the F-35 program, though he praised President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for helping the United States “in so many different ways.”
When asked what Trump had told him about the fighter jets and how Ankara planned to resolve the S-400 issue, Erdoğan declined to elaborate, telling Reuters correspondent Hümeyra Pamuk only, “Stay tuned.”
Turkey’s Defense Ministry on Thursday welcomed Trump’s remarks on the sanctions and said Ankara expected the removal of measures imposed under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), as well as other restrictions on the Turkish defense industry.
Turkey was removed from the F-35 program in 2019 after taking delivery of the S-400 system despite US warnings that it could expose sensitive information about the stealth aircraft to Russia.
Washington imposed CAATSA sanctions in 2020 on Turkey’s Presidency of Defense Industries.
The sanctions are only one obstacle to Turkey’s return to the program. A provision in the fiscal 2020 US defense authorization law bars the transfer of F-35 aircraft to Turkey unless the administration certifies to Congress that Ankara no longer possesses the S-400 system, related equipment and personnel and has pledged not to acquire another system that could compromise the aircraft.
That means Trump cannot restore Turkey to the program through executive action alone. Congress would remain a major hurdle, and lawmakers from both parties have opposed an F-35 transfer while the S-400 issue remains unresolved.
© Agence France-Presse