By Ahval
Turkey will not be able to bear potential U.S. sanctions over its looming purchase of Russian S-400 defence systems and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan should not sacrifice the country’s economy over for anti-U.S. sentiments, consultant to the U.S. Department of State John Sitilides told U.S.-government funded news outlet Voice of America Turkish.
“If Turkey formally enters a recession, it may be forced to take out a loan from the IMF to save its economy,’’ Sitilides said, adding that uncontrollable inflation, unemployment and a serious debt crisis are knocking on Ankara’s door.
The statement form Sitilides joins that of a chorus of top U.S. officials in warning that Ankara’s purchase of the Russian system could lead to U.S. sanctions and place Turkey’s involvement in the F-35 fighter jet programme at risk.
The U.S. State Department consultant said that Turkey was experiencing its weakest economy in over two decades and as such Erdoğan should be careful to not wreak havoc in the country’s economy “to collect points in domestic politics’’ or stir up “anti-U.S. or anti NATO sentiments.”
Citing security concerns involving Turkey’s purchase of the S-400 air defence system despite the objections of its NATO allies, Washington has threatened to impose economic sanctions against Turkey under CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act), which is likely to deal a heavy blow to the country’s ailing economy which is suffering from soaring inflation, unemployment and a sliding currency.
Sitidiles also touched on criticisms levelled at NATO over member Greece’s possession of the Russian S-300 missile system since the late 1990s.
The S-300 system did not create an alarm for NATO as long as they were used for lawful defence, he said, noting however that the Turkey’s increasingly close relations with an aggressive’’ country like Russia poses a different concern.
“This Russia is not the country it was in 2003,’’ he said, stressing Moscow’s anti-U.S, anti-NATO and anti-Western stance on numerous matters.
