ANKARA, April 4 (Xinhua) -- The deployment of Russian S-400 anti-ballistic missile systems has been scheduled in July 2019, the head of Turkish procurement agency said Wednesday.
"The time of delivery cited on the purchasing contract of S-400s has been brought forward to July 2019," Ismail Demir, the head of the Undersecreteriat for Defense Industries (SSM) wrote on his Twitter.
Demir's words came after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Tuesday to speed up the delivery of the advanced defense systems, during a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart Erdogan in Ankara.
Turkey struck a deal with Russia on purchasing of S-400 missile systems in September 2017. Three months later, the two countries signed a loan agreement for the missiles purchase.
Turkish and Russian delegations met Tuesday for the Turkey-Russia High-Level Cooperation Council, which was attended by the presidents of the two countries and several ministers in order to enhance bilateral relations.