Facing a serious shortfall, Moscow has asked Ankara to return the S-400 surface-to-air missile systems sold to Turkey in 2017.
Russia is trying to get back the S-400 batteries that Turkey purchased in 2017 for $2.5 billion, according to the Turkish outlet Nefes, which cited defense-industry sources.
The request involves two S-400 battalions delivered to Turkey in 2019. That deal triggered a diplomatic crisis between Ankara and Washington at the time: the U.S. removed Turkey from the F-35 fighter program and imposed sanctions under the CAATSA law.
Media reports say Moscow’s push is tied to an acute shortage of air-defense systems inside Russia. The S-400s and their interceptors are being heavily used amid the war against Ukraine, while demand from third countries continues to grow. Russia has almost no spare batteries left; available systems are already deployed on the front lines or guarding military facilities.
The S-400 units in Turkey have not been integrated into NATO’s air-defense network. Their missiles are approaching the end of their shelf life, and the launchers require regular maintenance—factors that add costs for Ankara.
Meanwhile, Turkey is advancing its own national air-defense project, “Çelik Kubbe” (“Steel Dome”), reducing reliance on Russian technology. In parallel, Ankara is seeking ways to ease U.S. sanctions to rejoin Western weapons programs.
According to the sources, Turkey’s leadership is weighing Moscow’s proposal without overt resistance and is showing “cautious optimism.” Ankara has not issued any official comment.
For Russia, the deal would be strategically significant: recovering S-400s from Turkey would quickly help offset its air-defense shortfall. At the same time, Moscow has already missed deadlines for similar deliveries to India. It was recently announced that the final S-400 batch for New Delhi has been postponed at least until 2026–2027.
