Beyazıt Karatash doesn't take the US offer for Turkey to buy Patriot missile systems seriously and claims that the main goal of such an offer is to interfere with the Turkish deal with Russia. According to him, there are lobbies in Turkey that advocate buying US systems and thus such suggestions will be surfacing in the future, but noted that the Turkish president, defense minister and foreign minister have stressed their adherence to the deal with Russia.
Karatash further added that the S-400's efficiency is greater than that of the Patriot system. According to him, the main argument "for" the US defense system is its compatibility with other NATO systems, but it's a small consolation for buying "unfit" weaponry.
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He also mentioned another significant drawback. Unless his country fully controls the system it possesses, plotters could be able to conduct airstrikes whenever they want, as they did on July 15, 2016. He is adamant that the coup was a CIA plot and thus it is unacceptable to buy defense systems from the US, otherwise Turkey will be exposed. According to the former general, the S-400 does not have this drawback.
"Buying the S-400 instead of the Patriot will provide Turkey with not only technological, but also political advantages in case the situation repeats itself," Beyazıt Karatash said.
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He also noted that sticking to the Turkish-Russian agreement will strengthen Turkey's image as a reliable partner, whilst violating it will tarnish it as untrustworthy.
Information about the future negotiations between Turkey and the US on buying Patriots instead of Russian S-400 systems recently surfaced in Turkish media. The news comes almost a week after a group of US lawmakers suggested punishing countries buying S-400 air defense systems from Russia under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
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