Turkish Air Force personnel have started training on S-400 Russian Air Defense systems in Russia.
“S-400 training started in Gatchina, Russia with the participation of Air Force Command personnel as part of long-range air-and-missile defense system project,” Turkey’s Defense Ministry disclosed on 4 Sept in a tweet.
Ankara received its first supply of S-400 missiles in July, despite a warning by the United States about possible sanctions and the expulsion from the F-35 stealth fighter program.
US close NATO ally, Turkey already felt that its decision to purchase an air defense missile system from the U.S. was not heading toward success, it signed a contract with Russia to procure the S-400 missile system in April 2017.
Opposing the procurement of the Russian system by Turkey, Washington said the sale threatened the future of Washington-Ankara relations and raises questions about Turkey’s relation with the NATO as Russia is trying to cast its own influence on the NATO member country to shake the alliance.
According to US defense officials, the Russian military could use an S-400 deployed in Turkey to collect sensitive data about the F-35 stealth aircraft, which is supposed to become the backbone of future aerial operations by Nato member states’.
Turkey disputes this, claiming that it will respect and protect the security of the F-35 by ensuring that the new S-400 system is not linked up to Turkey’s wider, Nato-Integrated Defence Architecture. The US remains unsatisfied with this proposal.
The S-400 system is considered as one of the most advanced and lethal missile systems in the world, capable of tracking and engaging several targets simultaneously, ready to be fired within minutes.
