Patriot Missiles Sale to Turkey won’t Affect S-400 Deal: Kremlin

Sale of Patriot missile systems by the United States (US) to Turkey would not affect the S-400 air defense missile deal between Ankara and Moscow signed in 2017, Kremlin stated.

"These are unrelated processes and in this case we are implementing the accords we have with the Turkish colleagues. The project and the contract on S-400s is at the stage of its implementation and it will be continued," Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by Tass Wednesday to a question on whether the US decision to supply Patriot missiles to Turkey would affect Moscow-Ankara deal.

The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on Tuesday approved Turkey’s request for 80 Patriot MIM-104E Guidance Enhanced Missiles (GEM-T) missiles with canisters, 60 PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) missiles along with other communication equipment for an estimated cost of $3.5 billion.

Turkey will use Patriot to improve its missile defense capability, defend its territorial integrity, and deter regional threats. The proposed sale will increase the defensive capabilities of the Turkey military to guard against hostile aggression and shield NATO Allies who might train and operate within Turkey's borders, the DSCA stated.

Ankara had bought the S-400 in 2017 for $2.5 billion after Washington had refused permission to sell Patriot missile defence system.

Russia is expected to deliver its S-400 missile defence system in July 2019, about a year ahead of the scheduled delivery period of 2020.

The US has been pressurizing Turkey to cancel the agreement for the procurement of the S-400 systems as they cannot be interoperable with existing NATO anti-ballistic defense architecture.

A group of US Senators earlier this year wrote to the State Department demanding sanctions against Russia and Turkey if they went ahead with the S-400 deal. The action was demanded as per the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), a controversial legislation which President Trump signed into law recently.