President Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday he did not expect the United States to impose sanctions on Türkiye over its planned purchase of a Russian missile defence system, but would retaliate if it did.
Speaking at a rare news conference for foreign media in Istanbul, Erdogan repeated that the purchase of Russian S-400 systems was a 'done deal' and said the United States should think carefully before imposing sanctions on Türkiye, a NATO member.
"I say this very openly and sincerely, our relations with (President Donald) Trump are at a place that I can call really good ... In the event of any issues, we immediately work the phones," Erdogan said.
"I do not see any possibility of these sanctions happening," Erdogan said. But he said Türkiye would not remain silent if they were imposed. "The U.S. has to think about this very carefully. We will have sanctions of our own."
Erdogan said while he enjoyed good ties with Trump, he could not say the same about relations between Ankara and other U.S. officials.
"When we have talks with those below Trump, we see that many cannot agree with our officials, and one example is the S-400 issue," he said. (Additional reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen Writing by Humeyra Pamuk Editing by Daren Butler and Janet Lawrence)