Turkey continues to test and prepare for the deployment of the S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems (SAM) acquired from Russia. This was announced on Saturday, October 24, by the Minister of National Defense of the Republic Hulusi Akar.
“The supply of these systems, their testing and systemic checks do not mean that Turkey is moving away from NATO,” said Akar, quoted by the Anadolu agency.
Earlier, Russian Senator Alexei Pushkov explained Turkey’s acquisition of the S-400 air defense system from the Russian Federation. He is confident that the main reasons for this were political, not military motives.
According to Pushkov, despite the threat of sanctions from the United States and the pressure exerted by Washington, this is a demonstration of Turkey’s special place in NATO, “a real application for a foreign policy autonomous from the alliance.”
On October 16, Turkey tested the S-400 purchased from Russia for the first time in an exercise in the north of the country. Three launches were made, the missiles successfully hit their targets.
After that, the United States expressed the hope that Turkey will not put these missile systems into service, otherwise it will face serious consequences in the field of security.