LE BOURGET, Paris, June 18: US acting defence secretary Patrick Shanahan and Turkish defence minister Hulusi Akar still in contact over Ankara’s plans to purchase Russian S-400 air defence missile system, and likely to hold a meeting on the sidelines of NATO conference scheduled for next week in Brussels, according to NATO’s commander.
US general Tod Wolters stated the military-to-military ties between the NATO and the United States remained “absolutely positively solid”, despite the decision taken by Washington to cancel its proposed purchase of US-made F-35 fighter jets if Ankara proceeds with its purchase deal with Russian for S-400 systems, according to Reuters news reports.
“We won’t co-locate those two assets, the S-400 and the F-35,” Wolters said at the Paris Airshow. “I know there’ll be follow on dialogue to work on … details between Minister Akar and Secretary Shanahan. As a matter of fact, there may the opportunity to meet next week at the ministerial in NATO.”
Turkish foreign minister Melvut Cavusoglu has on Friday said the nation will opt to retaliate if the US attempts to impose US sanctions on Turkey over its purchase deal of S-400 air defence missile system with Russia.
Tensions between the US and Turkey have reached a much higher pitch in recent times over Turkey’s purchase deal with Russia of S-400 systems, which Washington has claimed the deal would jeopardize its NATO alliance role in the training programme of F-35 fighter jets, potentially prompting further sanctions.
“One country cannot give instructions to another on how to act. The US should abandon this behaviour. Everyone is concerned about this. How far can it go? If the US takes steps against us, then we will be forced to take reciprocal steps”, he said in an interview with the channel NTV.
Cavusoglu’s remarks come after Ibrahim Kalin, the Turkish presidential spokesperson, slammed a US letter by acting defence chief Patrick Shanahan to Ankara’s defence minister which reportedly contained threats to remove Turkey from the F-35 fighter jets training programme in retaliation to Turkey-Russia deal of S-400s.
In turn, Turkey has stressed the S-400s were not linked to the NATO security, the F-35 or the US in any way, and Washington’s decision to acquire all of them “does not target a third country”.