Russia 'ready to hold talks with Turkey on supplying warplanes'

Duvar English 

An official from the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation has said that Moscow is ready to hold talks with Turkey on supplying warplanes, mainly Su-35 or Su-57. 

According to the official, the country is ready to talk to Ankara to supply all Russian-made military products, including the new warplanes, Sputnik reported. 

Saying that Ankara was interested in acquiring Su-35 jets in the past, the official noted that talks can be held if Turkey submits a request. 

Russia's defense cooperation with NATO member state Turkey has expanded in recent years despite heightened pressure from the United States. The purchase of the Russian-made S-400 Triumf anti-aircraft missile system came at a heavy price for Turkey, which has been expelled from the U.S.-sponsored F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program.

In 2019, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the Russian Air Force to receive 76 Su-57s by 2028. The aircraft was officially unveiled at the 2019 MAKS International Aviation and Space Salon in Moscow, where Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan expressed his interest in Russian Su-57 warplanes.

An official spokesman for the Service, meanwhile, said that it has received a number of requests from foreign customers for the Su-57E multirole fighter aircraft.

"Requests were received concerning the Su-57E aircraft, although there are no Middle East countries among them. Nevertheless, foreign customers of this region show interest in this airplane as well," the press service said.

The top priority task is to supply the Su-57 airplane to the Russian Defense Ministry, the Service said. "However, we are ready to start deliberation of this topic in case of interest of our foreign partners," the press service noted.

The Su-57 fifth-generation fighter aircraft is intended to neutralize all kinds of aerial, ground-based and above-water targets.