Turkey: Stance on buying Russian S-400 unchanged; working group can resolve row with US

Turkey has once again defied US calls to abandon a deal for the purchase of Russian S-400 missile defense systems, repeating an offer for a NATO-led working group to resolve the long-running dispute with Washington.

Speaking at a virtual event organized by the Washington-based Atlantic Council on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu stressed that Turkey’s stance on how to settle the S-400 issue had not changed.

“We offer the US to establish a technical working group with NATO’s inclusion and NATO can lead this technical working group actually. And this offer is still on the table,” he said.

In September 2017, Ankara signed a $2.5 billion deal with Moscow to procure the S-400, a Russian-made mobile surface-to-air defense system which is designed to destroy aircraft, cruise and ballistic missiles, and can also be used against ground installations.

The delivery of S-400 launchers began in July 2019, infuriating the US, which had long warned that Turkey cannot have both the S-400 and American Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jets.

The US claimed that the S-400 defense systems were incompatible with NATO equipment and could expose the F-35s to possible Russian subterfuge.

The S-400 deal prompted Washington to threaten sanctions against Ankara and suspend Turkish involvement in its F-35 jet program.

The US further conditioned the supply of its Patriot missiles to Turkey on returning the already purchased S-400 systems back to Russia.

Last April, Cavusoglu offered that Turkey and the US form a working group to determine that the S-400 system does not pose a threat to US or NATO military equipment.

US taking no step to form S-400 working group: Turkey

Turkey says the United States has not moved to create the joint S-400 working group.

On Tuesday, he repeated his offer and emphasized that Turkey’s decision to buy the S-400 was a result of the US “reluctance” to meet his country’s urgent needs.

“What I am trying to say is that: we had to buy S-400 air defense systems just because we could not purchase those kind of system from our allies for last 10 years. And in the future we need more air defense systems,” Cavusolgu said.

“If our allies can provide — it does not have to be only Patriot from the United States, it can also be a SAMP/T of Eurosam, a joint venture of France and Italy, or any similar system from other allies — and we prefer to purchase from our allies. If not, I have to seek alternatives,” Cavusoglu added.

‘US preconditions for Patriot delivery improper’

The top Turkish diplomat also criticized the US for putting various preconditions for the delivery of Patriots to his country, but still expressed Ankara’s readiness to purchase the missile systems in case of “a good offer.”

“First of all, it is not appropriate to put preconditions when an ally is in need, an urgent need,” Cavusoglu said referring to the situation in Syria’s Idlib Province, where the Damascus government is conducting an operation against Ankara-backed militants.

“Turkey needed the support of NATO, and also of allies, member states … And we need advanced missile and air defense systems to protect our people,” he added. “The ballistic threat that Turkey faces is real.”

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