Turkey says interested in Russian S-500 missiles too

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says that his country, which recently announced plans to buy S-400 surface-to-air missile systems from Russia, is also interested in acquiring a future Russian missile system that is still under development, RFE/RL reports.

"In our talks with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin we are not thinking of stopping with the S-400s. We have had talks on the S-500s too," Turkish media reports on Friday, October 13 quoted Erdogan as saying.

NATO member Turkey's move to acquire the S-400s has been regarded in some Western capitals as a snub to the alliance amid tensions with Russia over its role in the wars in Syria and eastern Ukraine.

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 in his remarks to reporters as he returned from a trip to Ukraine and Serbia.

Erdogan did not say when he had discussed the issue with Putin. The two leaders held talks in Ankara on September 28.