Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu commented on the request by the U.S. Congress delegation urging Ankara to give up.the purchase of S-400 missiles
Asked whether news that appeared in the local media about a request by a visiting U.S. Congress delegation urging Ankara to give up the purchase of S-400 missiles from Russia to be able to receive the F-35 fighter jets was true, Çavuşoğlu said no.
The minister said Turkey was in immediate need of an air defense system, and that its ally the U.S. was not willing to provide it.
"We have to protect our air space. This is a must for us. They should understand it," Daily Sabah cited him as saying. "Can the U.S. give us a guarantee to sell Patriots?" Çavuşoğlu asked.
The Turkish minister added that Turkey wanted to solve issues with the U.S. as two equal partners, warning that "one-sided impositions" were not of help.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis said yesterday at a press conference at Pentagon that Turkey's decision to bring in Russian anti-aircraft and anti-missile systems concerns the U.S.
