US behind Turkey's purchase of Chinese missile system: Kanwa

The primary reason for Turkey, a major US ally and a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, to purchase the FN FS-2000, the export version of the Chinese HQ-9 long-range surface-to-air missile, was not to defend its airspace but to steal critical information regarding the missile for the United States, according to Kanwa Defense Review operated by Andrei Chang, a military analyst based in Canada, also known as Pinkov.

Turkey's national interests rely on the acceptance of the United States and European Union, the article said that and for this reason it is very hard to imagine that some day Turkey will side with potential NATO adversaries such as Russia or China. The government in Ankara also realizes how much pressure will be on them if they chose to purchase Chinese instead of American air defense systems.

Kanwa said that Turkey's new cross-harbor tunnel beneath the Bosphorus was completed with investment from Japan. As Japan is now a major advocate of Turkey's accession to the European Union, the report said it is impossible for it to become a security partner with China, which is engaged in a territorial dispute with Japan in the East China Sea.

The report also said that Germany, a fellow NATO member, could can stop Turkey from getting too close to China through halting the provision of supplies that the Turkish navy requires for its Meko-class frigates. The United States can also refuse to sell the fifth-generation Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighters to Turkey in protest against Ankara's cooperation with Beijing. This would be a very expensive price for Turkey to pay for changing sides, according to the magazine.

As most of its weapons systems are from either the United States or other NATO powers, Turkey is unlikely to purchase Chinese missiles, Kanwa said, which is why Russia pulled its S-400 from the competition. Apparently, Turkey is trying to steal critical data from the HQ-9 for its allies through the purchase of the Chinese missile, following the example of South Korea when it previously did the same with the Russian-built Sukhoi Su-35 fighter.http://www.wantchinatimes.com/