S-400 anti-aircraft missile defense system
Turkish Armed Forces are looking to form a new regimental
command consisting of two battalions and four units to accommodate the S-400
anti-aircraft missile defense system, media reports have claimed.
Each defense system will include missile launch pads, long-range
radars and command-control vehicles. All the instruments comprising the defense
system will be deployed over wheeled vehicles so they can easily be transferred
to different regions in case of a crisis.
Last week Ankara officially signed the $2.5-billion
agreement with Russia to purchase S-400 missile defense systems. The deal would
make Turkey the first NATO member to own the system.
Turkey's Undersecretariat for the Defense Ministry said
the systems will be able to function without any connection to external power
and will be managed by Turkish personnel, rather than Russian advisers.
Presidential spokesperson İbrahim Kalın said yesterday
that the Russian advisors would only provide technical know-how and training.
Additionally, an indigenous identification friend-or-foe system will be
integrated into the system.
Turkey will buy two S-400 surface-to-air missile
batteries from Russia, with the first delivery planned for the first quarter of
2020, according to the agreement.
Ankara decided to buy the missile system last September
to address its growing defense needs. However, Turkey faced criticism from NATO
allies who claimed that the country was moving away from the military alliance.
In response to the criticism, Turkey stressed that the
decision to procure the defense system from Russia was not politically
motivated but should be considered an effort to meet the defense needs of the
country.
Officials from Ankara have said that Turkey first
attempted to purchase a defense system from NATO member states, but never had
its demands addressed.
Despite criticisms, NATO Secretary-General Jens
Stoltenberg ended speculations on Sept. 19, 2017, when he said member states
had the sovereign right to make decisions regarding their military purchases.
Original post: dailysabah.com
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