Turkey to test S-400 air defense system alarming USA and NATO

Turkey's purchase of Russian weapons has alarmed NATO allies. During the next week, Turkey plans to carry out a comprehensive test of the S-400 missile defence system. 

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg travelled to Ankara two days ago to address rising tensions in the eastern Mediterranean between the two Atlantic Alliance members, Greece and Turkey. But he also raised concerns about the consequences of the acquisition of the Russian-made S-400 anti-missile system. 

This Russian defence system equipment could pose a risk to an Alliance plane and could trigger a US reaction in the form of sanctions, the NATO chief pointed out.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg urged Turkish officials during a visit to Ankara on Monday to seek "alternative solutions" to the country's air defense needs, emphasizing that activating the S-400 risks compatibility with NATO aircraft and defenses.

But it seems that the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has ignored Stoltenberg's recommendations. The air force is not only activating the batteries, but also testing the equipment, as well as preparing the Turkish personnel at a site in the province of Sinop on the Black Sea coast. 

So far, the Turkish Ministry of Defence has not commented anything to the media. The S-400 deal has come as a surprise to Turkey's NATO allies, who fear that it may help Moscow gather intelligence about the block's capabilities, specifically the stealthy F-35 fighter plane manufactured by Lockheed Martin. 

The US administration of Donald Trump expelled Ankara from the development of the advanced F-35 to protest against the acquisition of the Russian S-400s, and goes further: it has raised the spectre of imposing sanctions on Turkey if the missiles are activated. As a result of the news, the lira weakened when the scheduled tests were announced.

Turkey has been discussing with the USA for years about the access to its Patriot missile system, and Washington has resisted to the Turkish demands for a transfer of technology. 

The USA recently proposed to provide the Patriot to Turkey as part of a solution to the S-400 impasse. Trump's idea is that the Ottoman country should give up these anti-missile missiles in exchange for the US Patriot. Ankara has refused to accept the proposal by insisting that the threat of US sanctions would not change. 

So far, the White House has resisted growing pressure from Congress to demand retribution from Turkey, which hosts key NATO facilities. Erdogan, for his part, has approached French President Emmanuel Macron to also acquire European-made air defence systems, known as Eurosam SAMP/T. 

Macron responded by saying that "Turkey must clarify its objectives in Syria before deployment of European made systems could be considered". Turkey's clash with the Kurds in Syria and the Russian security forces themselves are making the international community uneasy. 

All this is added to the recent information confirming Turkey's participation in the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, where it supports Azerbaijan with armaments and militia coming from Northern Syria and Libya. These reports, together with the tensions in the eastern Mediterranean, have set off discussions between the French and Anatolian governments. 

Turkey continues to ignite the tension and uncertainty of the international community. Some people say that it needs to make these movements in order to expand geopolitical hegemony, others believe it is simply an incendiary policy that leads nowhere. Erdogan will have to clarify which allied links are those that matter to him and respect the established international courses of action in order not to upset the balance of the current world order.