Russia says Turkey could sign new S-400 missile deal soon: Ifax

Russia and Turkey are close to signing a new contract to supply Ankara with additional S-400 air defense units in the near future, the Interfax news agency cited the head of Russia’s Rosoboronexport arms exporter as saying on Monday.

Turkey’s initial purchase of S-400s from Russia strained ties with the United States and its NATO allies. Washington sanctioned Ankara and has threatened to impose new sanctions if it buys more major arms systems from Moscow.

In another development, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed the situation in Afghanistan during a phone call and agreed to strengthen bilateral coordination on Afghan issues, the Kremlin said in a statement on Saturday.

The presidents emphasized the priority was counter-terrorism and efforts to tackle drug trafficking, the Kremlin said.