Turkey rejects US proposal to give Ukraine S-400 system

Turkey has refused the U.S.'s suggestion to give Ukraine its advanced S-400 air defense system it bought from Russia, Turkish news outlet Lodos Haber reported on May 7.

Defense Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu argued that the U.S.'s offer directly concerns Turkish sovereignty.

The U.S. has been trying to convince countries that operate Russian missiles like S-300 and S-400 to consider giving some to Ukraine.

The S-400 was developed in post-Soviet Russia, and is a more advanced and capable version of the S-300, which Ukraine extensively operates, but for which the interceptor missiles are limited.

The system Turkey bought from Russia in 2017 were highly contentious for Washington, which sanctioned Turkey’s defense industry and excluded it from the F-35 joint strike fighter program.

Ankara refused to budge, as the weapons had become a point of pride, Reuters reported, citing analysts.

Çavuşoğlu also spoke about the F-35 program, saying Turkey was developing its own domestic fighter aircraft.

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Kyiv IndependentAlexander Khrebet