Those Threatening Us with Sanctions Will Ultimately Be Disappointed: Erdoğan

Those who threaten Turkey with sanctions will ultimately be disappointed, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stated yesterday, as reported by the Ekathimerini newspaper.

According to Erdoğan, Turkey "will never be shaken in the exercise of its sovereign rights."

"They have tried to intimidate Turkey by all means, such as using terrorist groups, attempts to overthrow the government, political and economic traps, and sanctions. Thank God, they have achieved nothing so far," he said.

Erdoğan also noted that his country is ready to cooperate with countries that show respectful and fair treatment.

The U.S. authorities announced on December 14 that sanctions would be imposed on Turkey's Defense Industries Directorate, its head, and three citizens of the republic—Mustafa Alper Deniz, Serhat Gençoğlu, and Faruk Yığıt—under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

"Turkey is a valuable ally and important partner of the United States in the field of regional security, and we seek to continue our long-standing history of effective cooperation in defense by removing the obstacles related to the C-400 as soon as possible," stated Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The supply of the latest Russian S-400 air defense systems began in mid-July 2019 despite a crisis that emerged in Turkey-U.S. relations due to this issue. Washington demanded that Ankara refrain from acquiring Russian air defense systems and instead purchase American-made Patriot systems, threatening to halt or completely discontinue the sale of its advanced F-35 fighter jets to Turkey. Nonetheless, Ankara continued negotiations with the Russian side to acquire additional batches of the S-400s.