Turkey says US tone not befitting partnership spirit

Turkey said on Tuesday a US warning that Ankara would be removed from Washington's F-35 fighter jet program unless it drops a planned purchase of a Russian air defense system was out of keeping with the spirit of NATO partnership.

A letter sent by US acting Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan to his Turkish counterpart earlier this month warning of the F-35 cancellation, and Ankara's insistence on installing the Russian S-400 system, has stoked tensions between the NATO allies.

Ankara has condemned the letter, saying it will not back down from its decision to acquire the S-400 missiles, which Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday said would arrive in Turkey in the first half of July. On Tuesday, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar wrote back to Shanahan, his ministry said. "The letter repeated Turkey's discomfort over the tone and approach which does not fit the...