ANKARA (Dispatches) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Saturday reiterated determination to fight against those targeting his country’s development.
"We will continue to let those down those who use many methods from terrorist attacks to economic traps to stop Turkey in the period ahead of us,” Erdogan said in a video message to mark the Eid al-Adha, a Muslim religious festival.
The president said Turkey performed positive progress in very matter compared the agenda of the Eid al-Adha last year.
Turkey gains its power from unity, solidarity, and brotherhood, he stated.
Ankara and Washington have been at loggerheads over purchase of Russian missiles.
Washington says the S-400s could compromise its Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jets, an aircraft Turkey is helping to build and planning to buy.
The U.S. has threatened to expel Turkey from the F-35 program under sanctions. Washington has already halted training of Turkish pilots in the United States on the aircraft.
Turkey has repeatedly rebuffed calls from the U.S. to scrap the deal, saying it is free to choose the countries it buys weapons from.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said Turkey will seek compensation if it is omitted from the F-35 program. He has said excluding Turkey from the F-35 program would be "robbery” since Ankara has already invested money in it.
Moscow and Ankara finalized the agreement on the delivery of the S-400 in December 2017 even as U.S. officials warned that the move would damage Turkey's ability to work with NATO.
Similarly, Washington has been attempting to dissuade India from purchasing S-400s. New Delhi reached a deal to buy the missile systems from Moscow in October.
Indian officials are now seeking a waiver from the US that will allow the nation to buy the weapons without the risk of violating American sanctions on Moscow.
The medium-range and long-range S-400 Triumf surface-to-air missile system was developed as an upgraded version of the S-300.
The all-weather weapon can shoot down aircraft at a distance of up to 250 km and intercept ballistic missiles up to 60 km away.