Originally posted to The Middle East Monitor website, 18 November 2021
Saudi Arabia does not plan to buy the Russian S-400 air defence system following the Kingdom’s deal for an American alternative, Defence News reports.
According to the report, Viktor Kladov, who leads Rostec’s international cooperation and regional policy department, said Saudi Arabia has moved on now that it is set to receive the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system.
The report says that the US State Department cleared the THAAD sale in 2017, estimated to be worth $15 billion at the time.
A department spokesperson said two years ago, the US and Saudi officials signed letters of offer and acceptance for the government-to-government agreement which provided the terms of transfer for the sale. The spokesperson referred to the Saudi Defence Ministry for further information.
On the contrary, the producer company of THAAD, Lockheed Martin, told Defence News that delivery of the first interceptors is projected to take place in 2023 and be complete by 2027.
