US imposes sanctions on ally Turkey over purchase of S-400 missile system from Russia

The United States on Monday, December 14 imposed sanctions on its NATO ally Turkey for purchasing S-400 surface-to-air missile system from Russia. The US Department of State imposed an embargo on Turkey's primary defence procurement agency Presidency of Defense Industries (SSB) for purchasing the missile system from Rosoboronexport (ROE), which is Russia's main arms export entity. The United States added that the sanctions are not meant to undermine the military capabilities or combat readiness of Turkey, but rather to impose costs on Russia. 

Read: EU Leaders Agree On Expanding Economic Sanctions On Turkey As Mediterranean Row Escalate

"The United States is imposing full blocking sanctions and visa restrictions on Ismail Demir, the president of SSB; Faruk Yigit, SSB’s vice president; Serhat Gencoglu, SSB’s Head of the Department of Air Defense and Space; and Mustafa Alper Deniz, Program Manager for SSB’s Regional Air Defense Systems Directorate," the State Department said in a statement. 

The United States justified the sanctions on ally Turkey, saying Washington on numerous occasions had made clear to Ankara that its purchase of the S-400 missile system would not only provide funds to Russia's defence sector but also endanger the security of the US military technology and personnel. The US said that Turkey, despite the availability of alternative NATO-interoperable systems, decided to go ahead with the testing and purchasing of the S-400 missile system from Russia. 

Read: Ahead Of EU Summit, Erdogan Says Threats Of Sanctions On Turkey Does Not Concern Him

Turkey ready to talk

Meanwhile, Turkey's Defence Minister Hulusi Akar has said that the country will continue to negotiate with the United States under the framework of NATO in order to solve the problems. "In order to solve what the S-400's interaction with the F-35 is, we have repeatedly said, and continue to say, that we are ready to talk and negotiate with the US in environments including NATO," Akar said in a statement. 

Read: Turkey Orders 304 Military Detained Over Suspected Coup Ties

The decision of Turkey to purchase the missile system from Russia led to the suspension and their temporary removal from the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter partnership, which is a global coalition between the US and its allies to invest in the development and procurement of F-35 fighter jets that are being developed by American firm Lockheed Martin.  

Read: Turkey Sending Mercenaries To J&K To Help Pakistan, Erdogan Paying Fighters: Greek Report