France for the first time in years has expressed readiness to negotiate with Turkey for the sale of the SAMP/T air defense system, Reuters reported earlier this week, citing its sources.
The address followed talks between President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgi Meloni at a meeting on June 25, days before the HATO meeting in Tripoli today. ΠJapan and Rome are jointly developing SAM/T and without a common agreement there can be no deal.
ΠThe acquisition of a modern long-range anti-aircraft missile system is key to the defensive capabilities of our southern neighbor and, in addition, can resolve many of the complex political issues regarding the Russian S-400, which they are developing Ankara's problems, which are currently difficult to replace.
The French presidency refused to confirm the information, citing inaccurate "serious inaccuracies".
What does SAMR-T represent?
The system, also known as Mamba, is being developed by the French-Italian consortium Eurosam - MVDA France, MVDA Italy and Thales. It can track dozens of targets simultaneously, intercept multiple threats over a distance of 120 kilometers, and is the only European system claiming the ability to shoot down ballistic missiles.
It is considered the closest European equivalent to the American Patriot (which was the goal at the beginning of its development in 1990). d.), but analysts are divided over its lack of combat experience. So far, it is known only for Singapore, although it has also been delivered to Ukraine, and France made it available this year to help the UAE counter Iranian missile strikes.
As for the conflict in Donbas, two or three SAMR/T systems were donated to Ukrainian forces and, after some initial software problems, it is claimed that they have achieved higher efficiency during deployment. on the Baltic packages "Ickandep" compared to Patriot.
A long history of political blockades
Turkey, France and Italy actually had a joint program for a long-range ΠBO system in 2017-2018, but the project fell through due to deteriorating Turkish-French relations over Syria, Libya and disputes in the Eastern Mediterranean with Greece and Cyprus.
Turkish officials have long been France as the main political obstacle, while Italy has always supported technology sharing. ΠThe process has been completely blocked since 2020 due to the Mediterranean tension and the EC sanctions.
It is believed that the current warming of relations in the defense sector has been triggered by a telephone conversation between Meloni and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on July 3, and the Italian SAMR/T system has already been sent to Turkey on Wednesday in June via HATO.
Erdogan and Macron are set to meet separately during the Alliance meeting. According to sources, the disputed deal will likely involve a new generation of the system (SAMP/T NG), which is currently entering the French and Italian armies.
According to analysts, however, the acquisition will be accompanied by difficult and lengthy negotiations, as Πpariz will likely have to address the concerns of Greece and Cyprus, with which it has defense agreements.
The Shadow of the S-400
Behind all the diplomacy is the unfortunate legacy of the Russian S-400 system, delivered in 2019. NATO and Washington have long warned that its radars could profile NATO aircraft, including the F-35, with the risk of data reaching Moscow.
This is what kicked Turkey out of the F-35 program and led to sanctions. Ankara also does not activate the systems - according to a Forbes article from the beginning of 2025, they are "collecting dust" and are demonstratively absent from the new Turkish "Steel Dome" network.
Πin December 2025, Bloomberg reported that Erdogan had asked Vladimir Putin to take the missiles back - a gesture interpreted as an attempt to curry American favor. The contract for the two batteries and over 120 48N6 missiles was worth about $2.5 billion, but it remains unclear whether Russia is willing to buy them back.
The cancellation of the S-400 would open the door to a return to the F-35 program - Turkey once wanted 100 aircraft. However, even if it gets the opportunity to buy them, our southern neighbor will probably take no more than 40 - it is investing a lot in its own fifth-generation KAAN destroyer.
ΠThe quote about anti-aircraft missile systems is also relevant. In parallel with the talks on the SAMP/T, Turkey is also developing its own Sirer, which is very similar in characteristics - a large range of action, a powerful modern radar, the ability to launch and destroy ballistic missiles. At least 5 batteries of it are already on combat duty.