US sanctions Turkey for purchasing Russian missile system

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo urged Turkey to resolve the S-400 problem immediately in coordination with the United States.

A year and a half after Turkey acquired a Russian missile defense system, violating U.S. sanctions law, President Donald Trump has implemented penalties against the NATO ally.

His refusal to implement those sanctions had drawn bipartisan ire in Congress, but authorizing them now has enraged Turkey, including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, amid deteriorating relations between it and its Western allies like the U.S.

The sanctions, announced by the U.S. Treasury Monday, targeted Turkey's defense procurement agency, known as the Presidency of Defense Industries, and its senior officials, including its president.

Congress was about to force Trump's hand, passing its annual defense policy bill last week that required the White House to implement these sanctions within 30 days -- although a senior State Department official denied that had an impact on Trump's decision.

Turkey acquired the missile defense system, known as the S-400, in July 2019. The purchase violated a sweeping sanctions law passed in summer 2017 by wide margins in the House and Senate to force Trump to be tougher on Russia. Trump, who wanted to avoid an embarrassing veto override, begrudgingly signed the law.

The Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, or CAATSA, targeted Iran, North Korea, and Russia -- requiring sanctions on any country that made a "significant purchase" of defense or intelligence equipment from Moscow.

"Today's action sends a clear signal that the United States will fully implement CAATSA Section 231 and will not tolerate significant transactions with Russia's defense and intelligence sectors," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement.

"I also urge Turkey to resolve the S-400 problem immediately in coordination with the United States. Turkey is a valued Ally and an important regional security partner for the United States, and we seek to continue our decades-long history of productive defense-sector cooperation by removing the obstacle of Turkey's S-400 possession as soon as possible," he added.