Turkey threatens US with sanctions over S-400 missile systems
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu promised that Ankara would take countermeasures against the United States in the event that Washington enacts sanctions against it for the purchase of Russian S-400 missile systems.
This week, the minister intends to visit Washington, where he will discuss U.S. threats to block the delivery of F-35 fighters if Turkey acquires the Russian anti-aircraft missile systems.
“We need a way to protect our airspace - urgently. If you are not going to sell them to us, we will buy them from someone else. You cannot refuse to sell and then declare an embargo,” CNN Turk quoted him as saying.
Çavuşoğlu urged the U.S. to reconsider its approach to Turkey and thus prevent a crisis in relations between the countries.
“Ankara considers Washington’s threat of imposing sanctions a mistake. The U.S. is adhering to a wrong approach, while Turkey is seeking to improve relations with the U.S. I would like to state clearly that Turkey will respond to any actions against it. It should be made clear that Turkey is no longer like that and never will be,” he stressed.
The U.S. State Department earlier said that Ankara’s purchase of Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems could adversely affect the supply of F-35 fighters to Turkey.