NATO official: Turkey faces 'consequences' if purchase of S-400 completed

A top NATO official has warned of “necessary consequences” for Turkey should the alliance member purchase a Russian air-defence system
Thursday, 26 October 2017 18:13

NATO’s Military Committee Chairman Gen. Petr Pavel has warned Turkey that there may be consequences if the country procured Russia's S-400 air defence system, adding that it will prevent Turkey from becoming part of any integrated air defence system with NATO allies.

"The principal of sovereignty obviously exists in acquisition of defence equipment, but the same way that nations are sovereign in making their decision, they are also sovereign in facing the consequences of that decision," Pavel said Wednesday, as quoted by Defense News magazine.

According to Pavel, the NATO allies should hold a discussion over this issue and "raise all concerns and potential difficulties."

The deployment of S-400 systems to Turkey without integrating them into NATO missile defence systems will also create "challenges for allied assets potentially deployed onto the territory of that country," the official added.

In September, Moscow and Ankara reached an agreement on the delivery of S-400 systems to Turkey. On September 29, Russian presidential aide Vladimir Kozhin confirmed that Turkey had made an up-front payment for the S-400s, adding that the delivery is scheduled for 2019.