Turkey has sold its Russian-supplied S-400 air defence systems to a third country in the Gulf, according to a report in the Turkish daily Hürriyet, a step that would remove a central obstacle in Ankara’s defence relationship with Washington. The buyer is believed to be either the United Arab Emirates or Qatar, though no official confirmation has been issued. The reported sale comes after US President Donald Trump announced that sanctions imposed on Turkey under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) would be lifted, and that he would consider restoring Turkey’s participation in the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter programme. Turkish officials have not commented publicly, but President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan cryptically told journalists to “keep following us” when asked about the fate of the systems.

Viewed from Washington, the arrangement is described by analysts as a “face-saving” deal that would allow Turkey to divest the Russian hardware while satisfying congressional conditions for sanctions relief. Under the CAATSA framework, the US president must certify to Congress that the S-400s are no longer operational, that Turkey no longer possesses them, and that Ankara has committed not to pursue similar defence cooperation with Russia in the future. Congressional aides caution that lawmakers may still challenge the certification if they deem the conditions unmet, and legislation passed in 2020 explicitly prohibits the transfer of F-35 aircraft to Turkey as long as it retains the S-400 system. The Trump administration, however, has signalled a strategic reset, with the president emphasising his “good chemistry” with Erdoğan and a desire to avoid sanctioning allies.

In Moscow, a member of the State Duma’s defence committee, Andrey Kolesnik, described the resale of weaponry as normal practice in military-diplomatic relations, provided the original contract terms permit it. He noted that the conditions of the 2017 sale might already allow such a transfer, and that the transaction would not damage bilateral ties. Turkish media reports indicate that Ankara has been sounding out Russia’s position and that Moscow “in principle does not object” to the resale. For Turkey, the deal offers a triple gain: removal of CAATSA sanctions, access to engines for its indigenous KAAN fighter programme, and a pathway back to acquiring F-35s, for which it was a manufacturing partner before its expulsion in 2019.

Israel has reacted with alarm. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly urged the US not to supply F-35s to Turkey, warning that doing so would “destroy the power balance in the Middle East.” Israeli security officials, cited in domestic media, argue that Turkish possession of the stealth aircraft would compromise the Israeli Air Force’s operational freedom over Syria, Lebanon, and potential flight routes to Iran, and could enable Ankara to study the jet’s vulnerabilities. Israel and Greece are reported to be conducting a joint political and military lobbying effort inside the Pentagon and Congress to block the sale. The Israeli security establishment views Erdoğan’s sharp anti-Israel rhetoric and Turkey’s expanding military footprint in Syria as indicators of a long-term strategic challenge. The dossier now moves to Washington, where the administration is expected to formally notify Congress of the sanctions-lifting conditions, setting the stage for a legislative review that will determine whether the F-35 pathway reopens.