Turkey has finalised a deal with Moscow for the purchase of Russia's S-400 anti-missile system, Turkish defense officials announced today, despite concerns voiced by some of the NATO member's allies.
The deal, which would make Turkey the first member of the military alliance to own Russia's most advanced air defense system, comes amid strengthening ties between Turkey and Russia and Ankara's deteriorating relations with the United States and other western countries.
The Turkish Defense Industries Undersecretariat said in a statement Friday that Turkey would buy at least one S-400 surface-to-air missile battery with the option of procuring a second battery.
The delivery of the first battery was scheduled for the first quarter of 2020, the statement said.
The two countries on Friday also finalised a financial agreement for the project, under which part of the cost would be financed through a Russian loan, the Defense Industries body said, without revealing details of the deal.
Turkish media reported today that Turkey would purchase four S-400 units at a cost of USD 2.5 billion.
Sergei Chemezov, head of Russia's state-controlled Rostech corporation, also told the business daily Kommersant in an interview published Wednesday that the contract was worth USD 2.5 billion and that a Russian loan would account for 55 per cent of the sum.
Chemezov said Turkey would buy four batteries and that the first deliveries would start in March 2020, according to Kommersant.
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