Russia to Supply S-400 System to Qatar despite Saudi Opposition

A senior Russian politician has said Moscow still plans to supply an advanced aerial defense system to Qatar despite Saudi Arabia’s reported opposition.
In comments made to local media, Aleksei Kondratyev, a member of the Russian upper house and the deputy chairman of the committee on Defence and Security, said Russia will pursue its own objectives in determining sales of its S-400 surface-to-air missiles.
“Russia seeks its own interest, supplying S-400 to Qatar and earning money for the state budget. Saudi Arabia’s position has nothing to do with it, Russia’s plans will not change,” Kondratyev was quoted as saying by Sputnik on Saturday.
“It is clear that Riyadh plays a dominant role in the region, but Qatar gets an advantage by enhancing its armed forces due to the acquisition of Russian S-400 systems. Therefore, Saudi Arabia’s tension is understandable.”
Kondratyev said it is also in the United States’ interest to prevent the sale of the S-400 since this means it will “lose a very lucrative regional market of weapons”.
According to Al Jazeera, Kondratyev comments come a day after French daily Le Monde reported that Saudi Arabia’s King Salman threatened to take military action if Qatar installed the Russian-made air defence system.