Turkey reaffirms commitment to Russian S-400 defence system

Ankara: Turkey's foreign minister said Friday his country is committed to a deal to purchase advanced Russian surface-to-air missile defence system, despite warnings from Washington that the deal could put the NATO member country's participation in the US F-35 fighter aircraft program at risk.

Turkey's decision to purchase the S-400 air defence systems from Russia has increased already tense ties between the two NATO allies, including over the war in Syria.

The US has issued repeated warnings to Turkey over the planned purchase, arguing that the Russian system may pose a security threat to the high-tech F-35s.

Speaking at a joint news conference with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, in the Mediterranean coastal city of Antalya, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu ruled out the possibility of Turkey selling the S-400s to another country as suggested by some analysts as a compromise solution.

Cavusoglu also insisted Turkey had met all of its obligations concerning the F-35 program.

"As a principle it is contrary to international laws for a third country to oppose an agreement between two countries," Cavusoglu said.

"We are committed to this agreement. There can be no such thing as selling to a third country. We are buying them for our own needs."

Cavusoglu added that Turkey and Russia were discussing delivery dates.

The US had agreed to sell 100 of its latest, fifth-generation F-35 fighters to Turkey, and has so far delivered two of the aircraft.

But Congress last year ordered a delay in future deliveries.