Russia Agrees To Grant Loan For Turkey’s S-400 Missile System Deal

Russia has completed negotiations with Turkey for the sale of an S-400 air defense missile system, and has agreed to grant loan for the purchase.

"All the issues have been resolved and I discussed this theme while literally entering this hall. The contract is entering the implementation stage actually in coming days. A part of the contract will be paid for by the Turkish side and the other part will be covered by a loan granted by the Russian side," Vladimir Kozhin, a presidential aide who oversees matters of military cooperation was quoted as saying by TASS Thursday.

"The deliveries will begin in late 2019 - early 2020," he added.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and his President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had discussed the deal valued at about $2 billion during Putin’s visit to Ankara last week.

The agreement to purchase the latest Russian surface-to-air missile defense batteries is Turkey’s most significant deal with a non-NATO military supplier, and comes amid strained relations between Ankara and several Western countries.