Earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Russia and Turkey should agree to use national currencies instead of the US dollar to pay for the $2.5 billion S-400 air defence system contract.
The US has offered to provide Turkey with a powerful air defence which would meet ‘all of Turkey's requirements if it were to stop its purchase of the S-400,' Anadolu Agency has reported, summarizing a Pentagon report to Congress.
Highlighting Turkey's “unique geostrategic position” between Europe, Russia and the Middle East, as well as its powerful military, which can be used in NATO operations abroad, the Pentagon nevertheless warned that it would “reassess Turkey's continued participation as one of eight partner nations” in the F-35 stealth fighter program “should they continue with their purchase of the S-400.”
“The US Government has made clear to the Turkish Government that purchasing the S-400 would have unavoidable negative consequences for US-Turkey bilateral relations, as well as Turkey's role in NATO,” the report added, according to Anadolu.
Turkey invested up to $1 billion into the fifth-generation US fighter design, and continues to provide multiple components for every F-35 built.
However, the Trump administration blocked the delivery of F-35s to Turkey in August amid fears that the plane's secrets may be leaked if the planes were delivered to Ankara. The US military has also
