Kremlin discusses letting Turkiye sell off Russian-made missile systems

MOSCOW: The Kremlin said Friday it was discussing whether to let Turkiye sell off its Russian-made S-400 missile systems, amid reports Ankara planned to offload them in exchange for Washington granting access to US-made F-35 fighter jets.
NATO member Turkiye has been blocked from Washington’s F-35 program since 2019, when Ankara received its first deliveries of Russian-made S-400 air defense batteries — a weapons system the United States had explicitly warned it against purchasing.
A columnist with Turkiye’s pro-government Hurriyet newspaper reported Friday that Ankara had re-sold the S-400 systems to a country in the Gulf, without citing a source.
“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 a briefing, when asked by AFP about the report.
Turkiye bought the S-400 air defense systems from Russia in 2017, during a time of frayed relations between Ankara and Washington over the war in Syria and other issues.
The move drew criticism from other NATO members and resulted in the United States sanctioning Turkiye under its counter-enemy CAATSA act, blocking Turkiye from procuring US-made F-35s that it had already paid for.
During a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said he “would consider” inviting Turkiye back into the F-35 program.
“We have a better relationship with Turkiye, and Turkiye’s been — in many ways — much more loyal than other countries that we think would be loyal,” Trump said, before adding later: “We’re gonna be taking the sanctions off.”
Turkiye requires Russia’s consent to re-sell the S-400s, however, as it does not have a re-export license.

Kremlin discusses letting Turkiye sell off Russian-made missile systems