Turkey Interested In Russian S-500 Missile: President Erdogan

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said Friday that his country is interested in acquiring a future Russian missile system S-500, currently under development, local media reports.

“In our talks with [Russia President Vladimir] Putin we are not thinking of stopping with the S-400s. We have had talks on the S-500s too,” Erdogan said, speaking to reporters as he returned from a trip to Ukraine and Serbia, as cited by Habertürk newspaper.

The S-400 deal, announced last month, has also caused concern because the Russian-made weapons cannot be integrated into the alliance's defenses. But Erdogan shrugged off those concerns saying “there was no problem with the purchase of these systems”.

The S-500 missile system, developed by Russian manufacturer Almaz-Antey, will enter service in the coming years, the Russian Defense Ministry said earlier this year.

According to The National Interest magazine, the S-500 will be an analogue of the United States’ Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD) and will be “more effective against stealth aircraft”.