Qatar Interested In Purchasing Russia's S-400 Air Defense Systems - Russian Ambassador

Qatar is interested in buying Russia's S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems, despite some countries already opposing this potential deal, Russian Ambassador in Doha Nurmakhmad Kholov, told Sputnik in an interview

DOHA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th March, 2019) Qatar is interested in buying Russia's S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems, despite some countries already opposing this potential deal, Russian Ambassador in Doha Nurmakhmad Kholov, told Sputnik in an interview.

In summer 2018, French newspaper Le Monde reported that Saudi Arabia had urged French President Emmanuel Macron to help prevent Qatar from purchasing S-400s. Doha's talks with Moscow on the possible sale were previously confirmed by Qatari Ambassador to Russia Fahd Bin Mohammed Al-Attiyah. According to the newspaper, Riyadh declared its readiness to take the necessary measures to prevent the deployment of S-400s to its neighbor under threat of military action. Bahraini newspaper Akhbar Al Khaleej later reported that Doha had abandoned the S-400 deal after receiving a warning from the United States.

"Doha showed interest in purchasing S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems, but in practical terms there are no specific agreements," Kholov said.

He recalled that earlier Russia had signed contracts with Qatar for the export of several types of Russian weapons, including small arms, Kalashnikov rifles, grenade launchers, machine guns as well as Kornet anti-tank missile systems.

Kholov noted that Qatari partners had assured him that procuring weapons from any country, including Russia, was their sovereign right, and stressed the inadmissibility of other states interfering in these processes.

The S-400 Triumph is Russia's next-generation mobile surface-to-air missile system that can carry three different types of missiles capable of destroying aerial targets at a short-to-extremely-long range. The weapon is designed to track and destroy various types of areal targets, from reconnaissance aircraft to ballistic missiles.