Erdogan: US Senator Bob Menendez 'enemy of Turkey'

By Cigdem Alyanak

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkey's President on Sunday criticized Republican Senator Bob Menendez as an "enemy of Turkey", saying Menendez brought a "thoughtless threat" to Turkey-U.S. relations.

Asked about a proposal introduced by Menendez to lift an arms embargo on the Greek Cypriot administration, Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters he believed U.S. President Donald Trump would "not fall for this scheme."

"A senator's approach at this point should never break down Turkey-US relations," he added.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when a Greek Cypriot coup was followed by violence against the island's Turks and Ankara's intervention as a guarantor power.

It has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years, including the collapse of a 2017 initiative in Switzerland under the auspices of guarantor countries Turkey, Greece and the U.K.

Turkey has consistently contested the Greek Cypriot administration’s unilateral drilling in the Eastern Mediterranean, saying Turkish Cypriots also have rights to the resources in the area.

- Delivery of Russian S-400 missile defense systems

Erdogan underlined that in buying and deploying Russian S-400 missile defense systems, Turkey was "not preparing for the war", but "trying to guarantee its peace and national security."

He noted that the missiles' deployment would be completed by April 2020.

U.S. officials urged Turkey to buy U.S. Patriot missiles, arguing the Russian system would be incompatible with NATO systems and expose the F-35s to possible Russian subterfuge.

Turkey, however, emphasized the S-400 would not be integrated into NATO systems and would not pose a threat to the alliance.

Turkey has urged formation of a commission to clarify any technical issues, but the U.S. has failed to respond to this proposal.

The U.S. has threatened sanctions over the purchase, with Turkey responding that any sanctions would be met in kind.

Erdogan underlined that Turkey was not included in the U.S. "Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act" (CAATSA), and thus that sanctions or ejection from the F-35 fighter jet project would be "out of the question."

CAATSA was passed in 2017 against Iran, North Korea and Russia in an attempt to combat those countries' influence across the globe.

Erdogan said the S-400 deal was "the most important agreement" in Turkey's history, because it did not make the country a market for weapons sales, but a partner in production.

Following protracted efforts to purchase an air defense system from the U.S. with no success, Ankara signed a contract in 2017 to purchase the Russian S-400s.

- Iran sanctions

Asked about the U.S.'s sanctions on Iran, Erdogan underlined that the region was tired of the war and that Turkey disapproved of these sanctions and practices.

He added that the region needed to be able to stand on its own two feet again.

Tensions have been rising between the U.S. and Iran since May 2018, when Washington unilaterally withdrew from the deal.

The U.S. has since embarked on a diplomatic and economic campaign to put pressure on Iran to renegotiate the agreement, as well as other Iranian activities Washington considers to be "destabilizing."

As part of its campaign, the U.S. has re-imposed sanctions on exports of Iranian crude oil, which have tanked the Iranian economy.

Tehran has rejected any negotiations with Washington until it lifts sanctions.

- Syrian issue

Erdogan said a two-day technical meeting was planned to begin in Astana on Aug. 1 to discuss the Syrian conflict.

Ankara will host a trilateral summit with the participation of Russia and Iran in late August, he said, adding that another summit would also later be held in Turkey.

The meetings will mainly be on Idlib and other parts of Syria on the general security situation, transition processes, constitutional commission and resettlement.

Turkey, Russia, and Iran are the guarantor countries that brokered a cease-fire in Syria in December 2016, leading to the Astana, Kazakhstan talks, which are running parallel to the Geneva peace talks.

Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011, when the Assad regime cracked down on protesters with unexpected ferocity.

Since then, hundreds of thousands of people are believed to have been killed and millions more displaced by the conflict.