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How Turkey is planning to handle US blowback over S-400s

Some parts of the Russian made S-400 missile system arrived in Ankara in the last several days, but none of the shipment included missiles.

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A cargo aircraft carrying components of the Russian S-400 long-range air and missile defense systems lands at Murted Air Base in Ankara, Turkey, July 15, 2019. — Mehmet Ali Ozcan/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

While Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced that the Russian-made S-400 missile system will be fully operational by April 2020, the first fleet of the S-400s is expected to be operational no later than November, security sources told Al-Monitor.

A number of S-400 system shipments made it to Turkey in recent days, and their contents may be providing important clues about how Ankara plans to handle possible US blowback over the S-400 deal.

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