Erdogan offers Trump working group on Russian missiles

AFP  |  Ankara 

spoke with US counterpart on Wednesday, reiterating an offer to set up a working group on Turkey's decision to buy a Russian missile defence system.

The move to buy the Russian S-400 system over America's Patriot equivalent has been a major source of tension between the NATO allies, leading to threats of US sanctions.

In his call with Trump, Erdogan reiterated the offer to form "a joint working group on Turkey's plan to procure the S-400," his office said in a statement.

The offer was first made in April but has yet to receive a response.

The two leaders agreed to meet on the sidelines of the summit in Osaka, Japan, at the end of June.

The S-400 purchase would expose to US sanctions against arms deals with

says the presence of Russian missile defences in would be a threat to Western military systems and could jeopardise its involvement in the fighter jet programme, for which it provides some parts.

But Erdogan has been adamant it is a "done deal", and said last week that had already sent personnel to for training. On a more positive note, Erdogan told Trump that he welcomed the decision to eliminate tariffs on Turkish steel, saying it would help their countries reach the goal of USD 75 billion (67 billion euros) in bilateral trade.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First Published: Thu, May 30 2019. 01:05 IST