Secretary Pompeo’s call with the Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglou
U.S. DEPARTMENT of STATE
Secretary Pompeo’s Call with Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu
12/17/2020 06:13 PM EST
Office of the Spokesperson
The following is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Cale Brown:
Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo spoke this week with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to discuss the December 14 imposition of sanctions by the United States on our NATO Ally Turkey for its procurement of the Russian-made S-400 missile defense system, as required under the Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). Secretary Pompeo made clear to Foreign Minister Cavusoglu that Turkey’s purchase of the S-400 system endangers the security of U.S. personnel and military technology and allows Russian access to the Turkish armed forces and defense industry. The Secretary stressed that the goal of the sanctions is to prevent Russia from receiving substantial revenue, access, and influence, and they are not intended to undermine the military capabilities or combat readiness of Turkey or any other U.S. Ally or partner. Secretary Pompeo also urged Turkey to resolve the S-400 issue in a manner consistent with our decades-long history of defense-sector cooperation and to re-commit itself to its NATO obligations to purchase NATO-interoperable weaponry.