Islam Times - Erdogan: Turkey Intends to Buy More S-400 Air Defense Systems from Russia

Islam Times - Ankara plans to buy additional S-400 air defense systems from Moscow, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in an interview for CBS published.

When asked by a journalist whether Ankara plans to buy more S-400 systems, the Turkish leader stated "In the future, nobody would be able to interfere in what defensive systems we buy, from which country and on which level. Nobody would be able to meddle in it. Only we would be able to make such decisions. Of course, yes, we will [buy the S-400]."

"I explained everything to [US] President [Joe]. […] We made a decision to buy F-35 planes and we paid $1.4 billion," he continued, adding that Ankara "still has not received the F-35".

"We also asked to sell us Patriot [air defense systems], but we were denied," Erdogan noted, stating, "You don’t give me the Patriots, so I will probably buy defense systems from other countries. Nobody can interfere in that."

The Turkish leader expressed his certainty that US ex-President Donald Trump and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg both agreed with his position.

When asked whether the US will be able to trust Turkey after that, Erdogan added, "This is what I say in response: excuse me. Who will share the risks regarding out security? How are we supposed to take necessary measures amid the security risks? Should we expect shipments of defense systems from countries that refuse to provide them to us?".