Motion for investigation into airspace security rejected by AKP and MHP votes: 'We paid billions of dollars'

The Grand National Assembly of Turkey convened under the chairmanship of Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Celal Adan. The General Assembly is set to begin deliberations on the "Draft Law on Amendments to Certain Laws," which includes provisions for ending the deduction of gambling and betting advertising expenses from the tax base, including certain precious stones under the Special Consumption Tax (ÖTV), taxing crypto assets, narrowing VAT exemptions, and increasing the fee for paid military service.

Prior to the deliberations on the draft, a motion for a parliamentary investigation, submitted to the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey by CHP Group Deputy Chairman Murat Emir to investigate the current state of Turkey's airspace security in all its aspects, was proposed to be discussed ahead of other motions.

CHP Zonguldak Deputy Eylem Ertuğ Ertuğrul took the floor to explain the justification for the proposal. Ertuğrul stated, "Today, we will discuss Turkey's airspace security, its strategic independence, and the fate of billions of dollars in public resources here."

"We bought the S-400, we paid billions of dollars, but we cannot use it. Why?"

Pointing to past practices regarding air defense systems, Ertuğrul said, "We purchased an air defense system from Russia to strengthen our air defense. The Minister of National Defense of that period said, 'The S-400 will not be a cure-all; Turkey must develop its own air defense system.'"

Recalling President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's remarks in 2019 regarding the S-400 purchase, Ertuğrul noted that he had said, "We might even produce the S-500 with the Russians," and added, "We bought the S-400, we paid billions of dollars, but we cannot use it. Why? Because we knew even when we were buying it that we could not integrate this system into the NATO system. We neither engaged in joint production with the Russians nor acquired its technology."

Ertuğrul stated, "Dozens of ballistic missiles are flying around in our region every day, there is a war right at our borders, and NATO elements are activated against a ballistic threat directed at Turkey. You talk about 'strategic independence,' but you rely on a system whose key is held by someone else in times of crisis."

"Billions of dollars have been lost"

While acknowledging the successes of the defense industry, Ertuğrul drew attention to the shortcomings, saying, "Our UAVs, SİHAs, our KAAN national combat aircraft, our tanks, and our ships are significant achievements, but our vulnerabilities cannot be hidden by hiding behind these successes. There is a Turkey that has been expelled from the F-35 program, and a Turkey that faces great difficulties even in F-16 modernization. Billions of dollars have been lost."

Ertuğrul, reacting to the inability to effectively use the S-400 systems, listed the following questions:

"Why are the S-400s not active, under what conditions will they be activated, and what is our level of dependence on NATO systems? How sufficient is Turkey's ballistic missile defense capacity, and how will Turkey defend its airspace the moment the NATO system does not work?"  

Stating that "defense policy is measured by real capacity, not slogans, and remember, it is not the politicians who pay the price for mistakes made in defense planning, but this nation in its entirety," Ertuğrul emphasized that Turkey's air defense cannot be left in a state of uncertainty and that an investigation into the motion is mandatory.

The CHP's motion for an investigation into airspace security was rejected by the votes of AKP and MHP.

News Source: 12punto