Turkey will use the S-400 surface-to-air missile batteries it plans to acquire from Russia if necessary, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said during a joint live broadcast by private TV channels TGRT Haber, TVNET, Beyaz TV and Akit TV in Istanbul.
"We will not just buy the S-400s and place them in a storehouse. We will use them if need be. This is a defense system. What are we going to do with it if not use this defense system? Are we going to depend on the U.S. again?" Erdogan stressed.
"When we have been demanding from them for years, the answer that has been given to us is: The [U.S.] Congress is not allowing. We are tired of this. Russia has responded to our offer with a pretty alluring offer. They said they would even get into a joint production," Erdoğan said.
"And with respect to loans, they have offered us pretty good loan terms. Right now, we are running this process as this," Hurriyet Daily cited the president as saying.
