Turkey's S-400 deal with Russia concluded: Turkish defense minister

ANKARA, Dec. 27 (Xinhua) -- Turkey's Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli on Wednesday confirmed that the S-400 missile deal with Russia had been concluded, state-run Anadolu Agency reported.

Speaking to journalists in Tunisia, Canikli said the deal between the two countries was completely done with 2.5 billion U.S. dollar.

Turkey has bought two systems of the S-400 air defense missiles and four batteries in total, he was quoted by the report.

"What was at stake during the negotiations was whether to take out a loan or finance it themselves," he said, adding "but the idea of paying a portion of the total amount by getting a loan prevailed in the end."

Sergei Chemezov, CEO of Russia's state-run defense company Rostec, told Russian daily Kommersant that the finance ministries of Turkey and Russia had completed the negotiations on the purchase and the only thing left is to approve the final documents.

The first system's delivery is planned for March 2020, Chemezov said.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Dec. 14 that Turkey was training its technical staff in both Turkey and Russia on technical work.

The S-400 is Russia's most advanced long-range anti-aircraft missile system with a capacity of carrying three types of missiles capable of destroying targets including ballistic and cruise missiles. Enditem