WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd December, 2019) Patience with Turkey over the S-400 dispute has long expired and sanctions must be imposed in accordance with the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), US Senators Lindsey Graham and Chris Van Hollen said on Monday in a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
"The time for patience has long expired," the letter said. "It is time you applied the law. Failure to do so is sending a terrible signal to other countries that they can flout US laws without consequence."
Graham, a Republican, and Van Hollen, a Democrat, noted that the CAATSA legislation requires the administration to impose sanctions on Turkey after its purchase of the S-400.
The senators said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has not given any public indications that he is going to change course since his visit to the White House in November.
They also noted that the head of Russian state arms exporter Rosoboroexport said on Sunday that Moscow's military technical cooperation with Turkey is not limited to the S-400s, and that the two countries have big plans ahead.
Moscow and Ankara signed a loan agreement for the delivery of S-400 air defense systems in December 2017. The arrangement has been strongly opposed by NATO and the United States, which has cited security concerns and the S-400's incompatibility with NATO's air defense systems.
