Pompeo urges Turkey to resolve S-400 issue

American sanctions imposed on Turkey for its purchase of the Russian-made S-400 missile defense system do not aim to undermine the military capability of its NATO ally, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has reportedly told his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu.

“The goal of the sanctions is to prevent Russia from receiving substantial revenue, access, and influence,” State Department spokesperson Cale Brown quoted Pompeo as saying according to an AFP report.

According to AFP, Brown said in a statement that the sanctions “are not intended to undermine the military capabilities or combat readiness of Turkey or any other US ally or partner.”

The same statement said that Pompeo “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.”