Defence minister tells US counterpart Ankara needs the Russian defence system because it faces a ‘serious threat’.

Turkey’s purchase of the Russian S-400 missile system was “not a choice but a necessity” because it is under serious threat, its defence minister has told the United States.

The comments came after a second shipment of equipment needed to make the S-400s operational was delivered to Turkey on Saturday. 

The US has strongly urged Turkey to pull back from the deal – the first such move between a NATO member and Russia – warning Ankara it will face economic sanctions, reportedly costing more than $2bn.

Defence Minister Hulusi Akar told his American counterpart Mark Esper by phone on Friday buying the controversial defence system does not mean a change in the country’s strategic orientation.

Turkey was under “serious threat” and its acquisition of S-400s was necessary, Akar said, adding it was obliged to take measures against “intensive attacks” from the Syrian border as it is a priority.

The first equipment for the advanced air-defence system was delivered to the Murted airbase outside the capital on Friday, the defence ministry said, adding deliveries would continue in the coming days.

The US was publicly silent on how it would respond to the Russian delivery.

Akar told Esper that Turkey was still assessing a bid to acquire the US Patriot air-defence system, and a deterioration of bilateral relations would not serve the interests of either country. 

US officials urged Turkey to buy Patriot missiles rather than the S-400s from Moscow.

But Ankara said it was the United States that refused to sell Patriots to Turkey, and that led it to seek other vendors. Russia offered a better deal, including technology transfers, it added.

US-Turkey standoff

The US has said Turkey will not be allowed to participate in the programme to produce hi-tech F-35 fighter jets or buy them. Washington has repeatedly said the Russian missiles are incompatible with NATO systems and a threat to the F-35s.

Afzal Ashraf, a professor of conflict security at the University of Nottingham in the UK, told Al Jazeera the situation was “a very significant political concern”.

“This is the first time a major [NATO] member has taken a weapons system from Russia. It’s a political statement that the US doesn’t have hegemony and control over NATO members, and particularly over Turkey,” Ashraf said.

“In military terms, it is an advantage of the US to have access to the Russian systems within the NATO armoury to understand the way the system works and deploy countermeasures against it,” he added.

Mustafa Adyin, from Turkey’s Kadir Has University, noted that Turkey has said it is “totally free” to use the defence system as it sees fit, but it is unclear what restrictions Moscow has imposed in the deal.

“We don’t know exactly the extent that the Russians would allow these missiles to be used and what kind of targeting possibilities… Much depends on the coding and friend or foe identifications,” he said.

Fitch downgrades Turkey’s rating

Sanctions would mark a new low in the already-tense relations between Turkey and the US. Last year, the US imposed sanctions on Turkey over its detention of an American pastor, triggering a Turkish currency crisis. The sanctions were later lifted upon the pastor’s release.

Fitch Ratings downgraded Turkey’s sovereign rating to “BB-” on Friday and said it remained vulnerable to deterioration of ties with the US.

The New York-based ratings firm warned the impact of sanctions on investor sentiment could be significant.

Turkey’s S-400 deal with Russia has also raised concerns in Western circles that Turkey is drifting closer to Moscow’s sphere of influence.

Ankara has refused to bow to pressure from Washington, insisting that choosing which defence equipment to buy is a matter of national sovereignty.

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