US repeats opposition to Turkish purchase of Russian missile as Turkish delegation visits Moscow

WASHINGTON DC (Kurdistan 24) - The State Department reiterated on Thursday its opposition to Turkey’s planned purchase of the S-400, an advanced Russian air defense system.

At the same time, legislation advanced in the US Congress that would block Turkey’s acquisition of America’s newest fighter jet, if Ankara proceeds with the purchase of the Russian weapon.

On Tuesday, Alexander Mikheyev, head of Russia's state weapons exporter, Rosoboronexport, announced that Moscow was moving up the planned delivery of the S 400 to Turkey from 2020 to 2019.

On Thursday, Kurdistan 24 asked State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert about the Russian announcement, and she repeated the firm US objection.

“It goes against our policy to have a NATO ally such as Turkey use an S-400 system,” Nauert said. “It is not interoperable with other NATO systems,” she added, so we oppose the purchase of the S-400 by “our partners and allies around the world.”

A 2017 law, known as CAATSA—Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act—provides for sanctions on parties that purchase goods and services from Russia’s defense and intelligence sectors.

Asked if the administration would impose CAATSA sanctions on Turkey, if its purchase of the S-400 proceeded, Nauert responded, “I’m not going to get into that. But we have made very clear what could trigger sanctions for other countries and entities around the world.”

The Pentagon has tried to keep tensions with Turkey to a minimum and earlier succeeded in watering down legislation that would have blocked the sale of the F-35, the latest US fighter jet, to Turkey, despite Ankara’s planned purchase of the Russian air defense system.

However, there is strong sentiment in Congress that Turkey is no longer acting as a US ally. On Friday, the Senate passed a bill that would prohibit Turkey from receiving the F-35, if it proceeds with the acquisition of the S-400. The legislation has now gone back to the House of Representatives for its approval.

Meanwhile, a senior Turkish delegation, including the Foreign Minister, Defense Minister, and head of the National Intelligence Organization, visited Moscow on Friday.

The future of Syria was the primary focus of their discussion. The regime is primed for an offensive on Idlib, Syria’s last rebel-held province. It borders Turkey, and Turkish-backed groups are concentrated there.

Ankara is keen to minimize the fighting. “A military solution there will cause catastrophe,” Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, said in Moscow.

The Russian government is ready to do what it can to address Turkish concerns. But it also uses the issue, as well as the tensions between Washington and Ankara, to improve Russian-Turkish ties overall.

Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the Turkish delegation and proclaimed that ties between the two countries “are both deepening and thriving and our cooperation on regional and economic issues are increasing.”

The Turkish side expressed a similar warmth, with Cavusoglu calling Russia a “strategic partner,” while affirming, “We will both improve bilateral relations” and “we will boost our cooperation on regional matters.”

On Friday, a UN Spokesperson announced that Staffan de Mistura, the UN’s Special Envoy on Syria, had invited Russia, Turkey, and Iran for talks, which will be held in Geneva on September 11 and 12, on forming a committee to draw up a new constitution for Syria.

In addition, the three countries plan to hold a summit in Tehran to discuss Syria’s future. “The date has been determined and will be announced very soon,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.

The warmth of the Turkish delegation’s visit to Moscow stands in marked contrast to the current frostiness in Ankara’s relations with Washington.