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The Pentagon and the State Department harshly criticized Turkey on Friday for reports that its military had tested Russia’s S-400 mobile surface-to-air missile system, which could further strain Washington’s relations with Turkey, which is the state. NATO member, CNBC reports.
Turkey announced in recent days that it is preparing to test the S-400 system, which is seen as a risk to the NATO alliance, as well as the most expensive weapons platform in the United States, the F-35 fighter jet. made by Lockheed Martin, writes news.ro.
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In 2017, Ankara signed an agreement with Moscow for the acquisition of S-400 systems, despite warnings from the United States and other NATO allies.
Moscow delivered the first four missile batteries in July 2019. A week later, the United States excluded Turkey, a production and financial partner, from the F-35 program after Ankara agreed to deliver the Russian-made system.
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The Defense Department and the State Department on Friday condemned the tests that allegedly took place in the Turkish territorial waters of the Black Sea, but could not confirm that the launch took place.
“The United States has told the Turkish government, at the highest level, that the acquisition of Russian military systems, such as the S-400, is unacceptable,” State Department spokesman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement. email.
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“The United States has been clear about our expectations that the S-400 system should not be operational,” he added.
A similar reaction came from the Pentagon.
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“We oppose the acquisition of the system by Turkey and are deeply concerned about the information that Turkey is putting into operation. It is not necessary to activate it. This runs the risk of serious consequences for our security relationship, “Pentagon chief spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said in an email on Friday.
The S-400, the successor to the S-200 and S-300 missile systems, debuted in 2007. Compared to American systems, the Russian-made S-400 is believed to be capable of striking a wider range of targets at longer ranges. long and against several threats simultaneously.
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In multiple efforts to dissuade Turkey from buying the S-400, the State Department offered in 2013 and 2017 to sell the Patriot missile system made by Raytheon. Ankara rejected Patriot because the United States refused to provide a transfer of missile technology to the system.
In 2017, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan negotiated a $ 2.5 billion deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin for the S-400, despite warnings from the United States that acquiring the system will have political and economic consequences. . .
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Under the sanctions law against US opponents, signed by President Donald Trump in August 2017, Turkey could face economic sanctions for accepting the Kremlin’s missile system. The United States has not imposed such sanctions on Turkey.
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