Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Sunday signaled a preference to retain Russian air defenses which Washington wants Ankara to ditch if it wants to buy F-35 fighter jets.

Fidan’s remarks during an interview with AHaber television came just a week after US Acting Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland paid a visit to Turkey and said the US may discuss Turkey’s return to the F-35 fighter jet “family” if the spat over Ankara’s acquisition of Russian S-400 missiles is resolved. Washington has sanctioned Turkey’s defense industry over its acquisition of the S-400s, arguing that it poses a risk to its fifth-generation F-35 warplanes.