New Delhi: For days, chatter round Turkey’s S-400 air defence system stored getting louder. Many of those claims revolved round the concept Ankara was weighing a significant choice that might doubtlessly create a path for the Russian-made system to achieve India.
The noise grew as a result of Turkey has been underneath stress. If Ankara needs to seek out its approach again into the US-led F-35 programme, it should surrender the S-400 system. Set years in the past by Washington, that situation nonetheless hangs within the air.
Consequently, rumours travelled quick that Turkey would possibly offload the system to ease tensions with the USA and that India may very well be a doable recipient.
However Ankara has now stepped in with a transparent reply.
Turkey’s Agency Denial
On Tuesday (December 9), senior navy officers in Turkey put all hypothesis to relaxation. Quoting high defence sources, Turkiye Right now stated the reviews about transferring the S-400 to any third nation, together with India, had been baseless.
One senior official was quoted as saying, “Türkiye just isn’t contemplating transferring the S-400 to any nation underneath any circumstances.”
It means the system will proceed to remain the place it’s.
How The S-400 Controversy Started
The roots of this saga return to 2017, when Turkey signed a cope with Moscow to purchase the S-400. The primary batch arrived in 2019. That second modified Ankara’s ties with Washington virtually in a single day.
The US insisted {that a} NATO member couldn’t function a sophisticated Russian missile system as a result of it may expose delicate knowledge in regards to the American F-35 stealth jet, knowledge that might ultimately attain Moscow.
The backlash was swift.
Turkey was ejected from the F-35 programme, although it had already paid $1.4 billion as a part of the acquisition plan. That cash has nonetheless not been returned.
Might India Have Benefited?
A number of worldwide reviews recommended that Turkey would possibly hand over the S-400 to the USA for analysis or go it to a pleasant third nation. India’s title appeared in these reviews as a result of New Delhi already operates Russian S-400 items.
Nevertheless, defence analysts accustomed to the techniques imagine India features nothing from Turkey’s model. The explanation lies in how Moscow dealt with the 2 offers.
For Turkey, Russia provided an export-grade model of the S-400. Moscow by no means totally trusted NATO with its core radar codes and held again delicate configurations.
India, however, obtained the identical S-400 configuration the Russian navy itself makes use of. In sensible phrases, this implies Turkey’s system just isn’t solely completely different, but additionally much less succesful than what India already has.
So even when Ankara needed to half with it, it might not add worth to India’s air defence grid.
What Ankara Is Signalling Now
Turkey’s newest assertion has made it clear that the S-400 will stay in its personal arsenal, with no transfer handy it over to India, the USA or anybody else.
The long-standing friction between Washington and Ankara over the F-35 will proceed to outline the following chapter of this story.