Türkiye says it will not withdraw from S-400 deal with Russia
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has said his country will not back out of its deal to buy the S-400 missile defense system from Russia.
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| Photo for illustration purposes only. Photo: Hürriyet Daily News |
Speaking to reporters on his return flight from the Russian resort city of Sochi, where a trilateral summit on Syria between Turkey, Russia and Iran was taking place, President Erdogan stressed that Ankara would push ahead with the S-400 deal. "We have reached an S-400 deal with Russia, so it is impossible for us to back out. The deal has been completed," he said."
However, Erdogan also said that Türkiye is ready to buy US Patriot missile defense systems, as long as the deal serves Ankara's interests. He also added that issues of Patriot missile delivery and production are still being discussed with Washington.
US officials have set an unofficial deadline of February 15 for Ankara to respond on whether it will buy the Russian S-400 missile system. Washington has warned that if Ankara goes ahead with the S-400 deal, Washington will withdraw its offer to sell a $3.5 billion Patriot missile package and cancel Turkey's purchase of Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets, potentially leading to sanctions against Ankara.
Relations between Türkiye and the United States have been strained over Türkiye's 2017 agreement to purchase the Russian S-400 missile system. The United States has threatened to impose sanctions on Türkiye, claiming the S-400 system is incompatible with NATO's common defense system.
Türkiye has previously affirmed its determination to buy the Russian S-400 system on the grounds that the US has not sold missiles to Ankara. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu affirmed that the contract to buy four S-400 systems worth 2.5 billion USD between Ankara and Moscow is being implemented and cannot be canceled. However, Mr. Cavusoglu left open the possibility that Türkiye will continue to buy weapons from the US and its allies in the future. According to Turkish media, the first delivery of Russian S-400 missiles will take place in 2019./.
