Moscow demands explanations from Turkey and the US over possible arms deliveries to Ukraine

Russia has demanded that Turkey and the United States explain reports of plans to hand over to Ukraine a large shipment of American weapons and ammunition currently held in Turkish army warehouses. This was stated on Saturday by Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, whose comments were cited by Reuters.

Earlier, the US State Department notified Congress of the pending deal: according to the department, the military equipment is valued at 283 million dollars (roughly 5.92 billion crowns). The package includes 70 ATACMS ballistic missiles, 12 M270 self-propelled multiple rocket launch systems, more than 2,000 units of cluster munitions, and 47,000 artillery shells.

Under current US procedures, the deal is automatically approved unless the Senate and the House of Representatives object within 30 days. The plan involves Turkey selling off older equipment from its stockpiles, with Ukraine hoping to use the hardware to defend against Russian forces.

Moscow's reaction and Ankara's stance

Zakharova said such a delivery would "seriously damage" Russia's relations with both Washington and Ankara.

At the same time, Turkey continues to pursue a pragmatic line with both Moscow and Kyiv. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, during a June visit to the Russian capital, said Ankara would keep trying to act as a mediator between the warring parties, and once again confirmed Turkey's readiness to host new rounds of talks aimed at ending the fighting in Ukraine.

Around Prague, based on reporting by seznamzpravy.cz