The Turkish Model! Now THIS is How You Deal With American Treachery and Endless Demands
60 Minutes — the most important news.
— Let's talk a bit about the Kremlin. Russian President Putin is meeting the UN Secretary-General Guterres. He's just declared that Russia, I quote: "is an integral part of forming a multi-polar world." It's all happening at the same moment when Portugal's playing... when the US quits the Human Rights Council. How shall we talk to those Americans? The first thing that comes to mind: either like Kim Jong Un or Turkey. Let's listen to Çavuşoğlu. The policy of ultimatums, threats and, well, rudeness is clearly becoming quite popular and efficient. Let's hear it.
Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu: "Creating artificial crises is what the West does. They think they can sell or deny selling whenever they want to. Turkey's quit this system of relations. What laws give you the right to impose sanctions after we purchased the S-400? Your approach is wrong. It will lead our relations to a crisis. We bought the S-400, the matter is closed".
— A fine Turkish response to the US. At some forums, the US declared that they prohibited purchasing weapons from Russia.
Dmitry Abzalov, Center of Strategic Communications: They sent letters to the countries that deal with Russia. They said they'd block the deals.
— They aren't going to block the deals. They promised that. The Senate prohibited to ship weapons to Turkey. However, they sanctioned the delivery of military aircraft.
— They are doing it bypassing the Senate. There's another problem: Even if we agree on something with the US what shall we do if they don't stick to the agreement? I remind you that the US promised Israel that they won't ship similar aircraft to Turkey. And now it is. What will Netanyahu say about that? His relations with Turkey are rather complicated. From this point of view, it's a question of arrangements. If you make arrangements with somebody they must stick to them.
— You have to arrange the implementation of the arrangements.
— What if Trump has internal issues tomorrow? And it's likely to happen during the midterm elections. Will he terminate the deal? That's the question. Turkey needs more reliable partners.
— We wanted to buy the S-400 so we bought it. The paradox is that the US is the main beneficiary of the existing system. Now, it starts quitting everything and everybody acts as they please. Turkey wanted to buy the S-400 from us and so it did. Why not? But if…
— Why isn't it supposed to buy?
— Turkey would have bought it anyway.
— Yeah, right. There are no limitations on purchasing weapons from another country. If the whole system worked as it used to a member of NATO would never go against…
— But what if our weapons are better and cheaper?
— I get it. Still…
— Have you heard of market economy?
— America obviously benefits from selling weapons to Turkey. They might get some short-term benefits but terminating their economic agreements with the WTO and their European and Asian partners will not bring them long-term benefits. But Trump is dismantling the whole system so that his steel and aluminum industry can get some short-term profit. It will hit the US economy in the long run.
— How?
— The global benefits the US economy gets from the division of labor, the international capital circulation and etc. exceed some local losses.
— But it's not just about aluminum and steel. The US President imposes sanctions in all directions, including military export. He wants the world to buy American goods instead of Russian. S. S-400.
— SS?
— S! S-400. Well, we better not joke about those matters.
— Better not.
— The problem is that Turkey remains a NATO member while buying S-400. The US doesn't want Turkey to buy it. There are no formal restrictions. But Turkey is a NATO member which draws security dividends from the collective security system.
— They don't care what you think.
— Especially when they get the Russian S-400.
Dmitry Abzalov: The Alliance didn't protect them when they shot our aircraft down. So speaking about…
— Even though they rushed to Brussels that very day but were booted out.
— The S-400s in Eastern Europe don't bother anyone. Some NATO members are enemies: Greece and Turkey are still engaged in a territorial conflict. They are still at it. There is no issue. The NATO charter has no article saying that you can't buy weapons and cooperate with other countries.
— They should make an article about NATO members being only allowed to purchase American weapons. That would satisfy the US.
— ...the weapons that Soviet armies had. They are buying them.
Sergey Sudakov, political analyst: There's no universal truth. There's no article about buying particular weapons. However, George W. Bush organized a system: 72% of the NATO funding comes from the US; other countries can be beneficiaries if they buy the US weapons. They can buy it on credit and get discounts. They can even lease weapons. Bush organized a system that appealed to many thus invigorating his own economy. He started putting money from one pocket to another. Now, when a country buys an S-400 instead of a Patriot certain American companies lose a lot of money. It's pure business. We must understand that there are the so-called weapon lobbies and there are…
— Turkey's so cunning. They'd been haggling with the US for several years.
— It's like they were playing.
— And then, they buy the S-400 from us.
— They get great Russian systems while getting cheap advanced aircraft from the US.
— But the Senate banned the deal.
— Still, they get them at the internal US market price. They won by haggling. You always haggle comparing all pros and cons…
— That's how the world works nowadays.
— Are those the aircraft they bought? And so…
— Did they buy them from a private company?
— Yes, a private one. There are many private companies working for the Pentagon. They get government contracts from the Pentagon. Look, he's playing a simple game: "I've been a NATO member since 1953. But if you start pushing I might as well quit." Don’t forget that Turkey has the 10th powerful army in the world. America won't do anything that will make Turkey quit the NATO. Right now, Turkey's in a wonderful spot. They can stand on both chairs and get whatever benefits they want. Right now, our main goals are…
— Why don't they sit on those chairs instead of standing?
— Let them stand for a while. They'll soon hold elections, so…
— Let's get back to the topic.
— Right, it's not about the chairs. It's not even about the S-400 or the American aircraft. It's about their rhetoric and how to bargain with the US to get discounts from both sides and get some cheap weapons. Is that how the contemporary international law works?
— We all should learn Turkish, Korean, and Russian.