Turkey takes first shipment of Russian S-400 air-defense system in defiance of U.S. and NATO warnings
The first components for the system arrived July 12 at Murted Air Base in Ankara, the Turkish Defense Ministry said in a statement. (The Washington Post)
ISTANBUL — Turkey has begun taking delivery of Russia’s S-400 air-defense system, the Turkish Defense Ministry said Friday, completing a deal that has threatened its standing in NATO and is likely to trigger sanctions from the United States.
The first components for the system arrived Friday at Murted Air Base in Ankara, the Turkish capital, the ministry said in a statement. Turkish television stations broadcast footage of the delivery throughout the morning as Russian cargo planes arrived at the base and equipment was offloaded.
The purchase underscored President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s increasing willingness to coordinate with Russia and risked a new crisis in relations between Turkey and the United States. Although U.S. law mandates sanctions against countries making a “significant” deal with the Russian defense industry, the Trump administration has given mixed signals about how exactly it might respond if Turkey went through with the purchase.
A basket of measures listed under legislation passed in 2017 — from which the administration is required to selected at least five — includes economic sanctions, revocation of visas and prohibition of all Turkish procurement of U.S. defense equipment.
The State Department and Pentagon have also warned of dire additional repercussions, including canceling the delivery of at least 100 U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets purchased by Turkey, as well as ending participation of the Turkish defense industry in producing components for the aircraft.
The breach would not only strike a heavy blow to Turkish manufacturers, but could also affect negotiations with the United States over Syria.
President Trump has been publicly supportive of Erdogan and last month expressed sympathy for the Turkish leader’s decision to purchase the S-400s. Erdogan, after meeting Trump at the Group of 20 summit in June, said he did not believe the United States would sanction Turkey.
The legislation allows the president to delay the sanctions, provided he certifies to Congress every 180 days that Turkey is “substantially reducing” its dealings with Russia.
But any hesitancy on Trump’s part is likely to meet with stiff bipartisan resistance and a possible legal challenge.
“The law is clear and I believe he will be compelled to follow the law with respect to sanctions,” Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a BBC interview early Friday. Separate measures in Defense appropriations bills require cancellation of the F-35s.
In a brief statement Friday, acting defense secretary Mark Esper said, “We are aware of Turkey taking delivery of the S-400, our position regarding the F-35 has not changed and I will speak with my Turkish counterpart . . . this afternoon. So there will be more to follow.”
The White House also said it was aware of the delivery, and a senior administration official noted that Trump had said at the G-20 that the issue was “a problem, there’s no question about it.”
The delivery of the Russian system came two days after Ambassador David M. Satterfield, Washington’s incoming envoy to Turkey, arrived to take up his post in Ankara.
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said that three Russian planes arrived on Friday and that the “process will continue in the coming days,” according to a defense ministry statement. Turkey’s discussions with the United States over the possible purchase of the Patriot missile system, the U.S.-made equivalent of the S-400, were continuing, he added, calling the Patriot system a “long-range air and missile defense system that we need.”
The Turkish statement did not say which S-400 components had been delivered, or when or where the completed system would be ultimately deployed. Senate aides monitoring the administration’s reaction said it was not clear what components would trigger the sanctions.
In remarks to reporters after his June meeting with Erdogan, Trump largely echoed the Turkish leader’s talking points, saying that Turkey “was not treated fairly” by the Obama administration, which “said no, no, no to Turkey when they wanted to purchase Patriots,” and Ankara had then turned to Russia for its air defense needs.
But Trump officials have emphasized that the current administration’s policy has been largely the same as Obama’s. The previous administration offered the sale but would not meet Turkey’s terms on price and demands that it be transferred system technology that would ultimately allow it to build its own air defense. Trump officials, who have been negotiating with Turkey for more than two years, have said that they believed they improved the terms but essentially offered the same deal.
Turkish officials have said repeatedly that those terms were insufficient, the $3.5 billion price tag was too high, and that the United States was becoming an unreliable partner. Russia, which has moved rapidly to expand its defense sales, especially in areas where it believes it is competitive with the United States, quickly jumped into the breach with an offer for quick delivery at two-thirds of the cost.
“This is the first time that Russia has installed military hardware of such sophistication in a NATO country,” said Marc Pierini, the former European Union ambassador to Turkey and a visiting scholar at Carnegie Europe. “The history of the relationship between Russia and Turkey is rather agitated and often hostile. But the current honeymoon is characterized by opportunities gained on both sides. Russia is making a move against NATO, and Turkey is making a move to restore prestige.”
U.S. sanctions on Turkey were “pretty much guaranteed,” he said. “But this is not so much about the sanctions but about Turkey being excluded from the F-35 program. This will open up new opportunities for Russia as well — they'll be able to sell their Sukhoi Su-57 equivalent. This will become a huge problem for NATO because the trust will be lost. But this is essentially what Russia is looking for — the erosion of that trust.”
A NATO official said Friday that while it was up to “allies to decide what military equipment they buy,” the alliance was “concerned about the potential consequences of Turkey’s decision to acquire the S-400 system. Interoperability of our armed forces is fundamental to NATO for the conduct of our operations and missions.”
U.S. officials have fretted that Turkey’s possession of the S-400 could give Russia access to secrets of the F-35’s stealth technology. Last month, the Pentagon said it would halt the training of Turkish pilots to fly the warplane and would not deliver several of the aircraft that had already been signed over to Turkey.
“Turkey’s purchase of the Russian S-400 air and missile defense system remains incompatible with the F-35 program. Turkey will not be permitted to have both systems,” Lt. Col. Mike Andrews, a spokesman for the Pentagon, said in a statement last week.
Russia’s Defense Ministry confirmed that the first shipment of the components needed for the S-400 missile systems was delivered to Turkey on Friday, Russian media reported, citing a statement. The remaining elements will be delivered to Turkey later, the ministry statement said, “in strict accordance with the terms of the contract concluded with the Turkish side.”
Some in the Russian government praised Ankara’s decision to acquire the S-400 systems despite the pressure from the United States and NATO.
“They came under unprecedented pressure but nevertheless prioritized their national security,” senior Russian lawmaker Franz Klintsevich said of Turkish leaders, according to the Interfax news agency. “They acted absolutely correctly.”
DeYoung reported from Washington. Ferris-Rotman reported from Moscow. Michael Birnbaum in Brussels contributed to this report.
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