Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) – On 14 December 2020, the United States imposed sanctions on the Turkish defense industry. Penalties were imposed within the framework of the law "On Counteracting US Adversaries through Sanctions" against the Turkish Defense Industry Directorate, its leader I. Demir and three citizens of the country.

These sanctions include a ban on all US export licenses and permits for the Defense Industry Administration, as well as the freezing of US assets and visas for I. Demir and other employees.

US Secretary of State M. Pompeo said the reason for their introduction was the purchase of S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems by Turkey. According to him, despite the warnings, Turkey continued to acquire S-400s from Russia and test them. He also warned that Washington would not tolerate major deals with the Russian defense sector.

The sanctions measures were condemned not only in Ankara, but also in Moscow. The Turkish Foreign Ministry threatened to take retaliatory steps, which will inevitably have a negative impact on bilateral relations.

In turn, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov characterized these sanctions as another manifestation of an arrogant attitude towards international law and the use of illegitimate coercive measures that the United States has been using for many years.

Commenting on the new sanctions, experts explain the concerns of Turkey and Russia with the following factors.

Firstly, through the sanctions decision, the United States has demonstrated its determination to punish even those countries that are NATO allies for military-technical cooperation with the Russian Federation. Now other states (Algeria, Vietnam, Egypt, Iraq, Qatar, Morocco, KSA), which previously expressed interest in acquiring the S-400, will obviously adhere to a more cautious approach.

In this regard, most experts consider Russia to be the main "target" of sanctions against Turkey. The direction of these measures against Moscow is not hidden in Washington either. The State Department said in a statement that "the Kremlin must pay a decent price for its wide range of malicious acts."

Secondly, the current US sanctions coincided with the moment when the EU adopted a decision to impose European-wide restrictive measures against Turkey. With this in mind, experts have no doubts about the coordinated nature of the actions of Western states.

In their opinion, the collective West is sending another warning signal to Ankara, which is trying to get out of the influence of the North Atlantic allies, about the need to review its "aggressive" behavior in the international and regional arena.

Thirdly, this step, perceived in Ankara as a very unfriendly gesture, can deal a certain blow on defense capabilities and the growing military industry of the second largest army in NATO, given the role of the Turkish Defense Industry Directorate as a key body for Turkish defense procurement and production.

In this context, it is noteworthy that Canadian and US companies have stopped supplying components for Turkish drones to Turkey - Bayraktar TB2. Turkish manufacturers are forced to look for replacements for engines and guidance systems that were previously supplied by Western companies.

The main beneficiary of such a tightening of pressure is Greece, which today has insurmountable contradictions with Turkey. It is no coincidence that the news of new sanctions against Ankara was received with great enthusiasm in Athens.

In general, according to experts, today’s measures may become a "harbinger" of the beginning of more serious sanctions pressure on Turkey if the Turkish side continues its independent foreign policy course, an integral part of which is considered the established practice of cooperation with Russia in the defense sphere.

At the same time, experts do not exclude that the use of "coercive instruments" in relation to Turkey may be ineffective and even counterproductive. Ankara, which has significantly distanced itself from fulfilling the role of a conductor of Western interests in the Middle East and has managed to establish itself as an independent regional center of power, is unlikely to make drastic changes in its policy under pressure from any world or regional powers.