3 hours ago
Source: Yahoo News
MUNICH (Reuters) - Turkey's
Foreign Minister said on Sunday Ankara had not yet decided which missile
defense system it would buy and it was open to bids from other
companies besides the current Chinese favorite if these guaranteed joint
production.
NATO member
Turkey's decision last September to choose a $3.4 billion offer from the
China Precision Machinery Import and Export Corp (CPMIEC) irked
Ankara's Western allies as the Chinese company is under U.S. sanctions
for violations of the Iran, North Korea and Syria Nonproliferation Act.
U.S. and NATO officials also voiced concerns that a Chinese product would not be compatible with other NATO systems.
"Turkey did not decide yet which system should be bought.. for us three
criteria are important - joint production, the time of delivery and
price," Ahmet Davutoglu told a panel at the Munich Security Conference.
The deal would mark a breakthrough for China in its bid to become a
supplier of advanced weapons. But Davutoglu said Turkey was still
negotiating and he had held a meeting with a U.S. company a day earlier.
"The Chinese company was the first because they offered us joint production. Joint production was important for us," he said.
Rival offers from Franco-Italian Eurosam SAMP/T and U.S.-listed
Raytheon Co RTN.N, the maker of Patriot missiles, were also in the
running he said.
"If the other
two companies give us the assurance of joint production in Turkey and
the transfer of technology, of course we wish to have this with NATO
allies."
"Everyone knows how
difficult it is if you want to buy something from the United States,
there is a long process of getting permission. If those companies are
offering us joint production it is negotiable," Davutoglu added.
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