The United States sees no threat to its operations at Incirlik air base following Washington’s refusal to supply the F-35 fighters to Ankara, the US Air Force commander said Tuesday. in Europe and Africa, Jeffrey Lee Harrigian.
“We remain focused on our military cooperation, and this relationship remains very strong, the Turkish Air Force continues to support us; In this regard, I have no concern about the impact on our operations at Incirlik;”
“We are still working in close military collaboration, and I don’t see any changes here,” Harrigian told reporters.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu had said that Ankara could respond to US sanctions for the purchase of the S-400, even against Incirlik air base.
On July 12, Russia began supplying parts of the S-400 anti-aircraft systems to Turkey under the $2.5 billion contract signed in December 2017.
The purchase of the S-400 caused tensions between Turkey and the United States, which demanded that Ankara renounce Russian weapons and instead of the S-400 buy US Patriot systems.
Washington has repeatedly threatened Ankara with imposing sanctions and suspending the delivery of US F-35 fighters if it does not waive the purchase of the S-400.
Thus, the Pentagon announced that it will exclude Turkey from the F-35 fighter manufacturing program before March 2020.
In addition, he estimated Ankara’s financial losses at about $9 billion.
Turkey, a member of NATO, repeatedly said that it will not give up the purchase of the S-400, despite pressure from the US, which warns that Russian systems are not compatible with the standards of the Atlantic Alliance.
Source: Elpais
