‘Turkey Won’t Ditch S-400 Deal With Russia Despite U.S. Sanctions’

Date: 15 December 2019 - 22:02

News ID: ۷۳۹۶۶

ANKARA (Dispatches) – Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has reaffirmed his country’s intent to keep the S-400 air defense systems it procured from Russia "whatever the consequences” as the U.S. Congress is taking the first step to punish the country for the move.
The minister explained that the country has been "desperate” to acquire an air defense system, but was turned down by the U.S. in that regard. He said that Russia, on the other hand, was willing to provide its S-400s, calling them "vital” for the country.
The foreign minister also noted that if Washington decides to punish Ankara with sanctions over the purchase of the Russian air defenses, Ankara will be forced to respond in kind.
"Sanctions and threatening language never work. But if sanctions are placed, Turkey will have to reciprocate”, Cavusoglu said.
The U.S. has been opposing Turkey’s purchase of Russian air defense systems from the start, threatening to block F-35 deliveries and impose harsh economic sanctions. Washington claims that the system is incompatible with NATO’s systems and could potentially reveal sensitive data about the F-35 jets to Moscow.
Ankara has refused to abandon the deal with Moscow, pointing out that the U.S. reluctance to sell air defenses had led the country to buy Russian, not American, systems. Turkey has argued that the S-400s are crucial for its national defense, but is still considering acquiring U.S.-made Patriots as well.
Recently, the presidents of the two countries agreed to form a bilateral team of national security advisers to address the disagreements regarding the S-400 issue, but so far their work has not yielded any results.