President Donald Trump, in the company of his Turkish counterpart, has said that the US would consider selling F-35 fighter jets to Turkey after booting it out of the program in 2019 over Ankara’s purchase of a Russian S-400 air defense system.
“That’s a decision we’re going to make… It’s a great plane, the best plane by far, and it’s certainly something we will consider,” Trump said, sitting next to Recep Tayyip Erdogan after landing in Ankara for a NATO summit.
Turkey has long sought to resolve the question of its readmittance to the F-35 program and the lifting of US sanctions that have soured ties and hampered Turkish defense projects, and has looked to Trump’s visit to break the deadlock.
When the pair met at the White House last September, both leaders expressed a desire to draw a line under the matter, although lifting the sanctions is a congressional decision.
Asked if he would lift the CAATSA sanctions, Trump said: “We’re going to be taking the sanctions off.”
“We don’t want to sanction friends,” he added.
Sitting next to him, Erdogan said he was confident Trump would resolve the issue and end the dispute.
“Mr. Trump has also personally given us his word on this matter,” he said through a translator.
“On this issue, Mr. Trump always stands by his word. Here again, God willing, I believe a favorable decision on the F-35s will emerge from this leaders’ summit.”
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was “very disappointed” by the response of NATO allies in Europe to his war with Iran after arriving in Turkey for the alliance’s summit.
“I was very disappointed with NATO,” Trump told journalists as he met Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “We didn’t need any help at all, and in a way, I was testing people, I was testing to see whether or not they’d be there, because I’ve long said that we helped them, but I’m not sure that they’d be there for us.”
Turkey accuses Israel of F-35 ‘disinformation’
Earlier, Turkey rejected as “disinformation” Israel’s claim that the sale to Ankara of US F-35 fighter jets and components would upset the regional power balance.
Ahead of a NATO summit in Turkey, Ankara’s foreign ministry slammed the claim made Monday by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The baseless allegations recently circulated by Israeli officials in a coordinated manner and with calculated timing are part of a disinformation campaign,” the ministry said.
“Netanyahu and his partners in crime deliberately distort any criticism directed at them and seek to divert attention through a systematic propaganda effort.”
Netanyahu had urged the United States not to sell the jets to NATO ally Turkey on Monday, arguing it would “upset the power balance” in the region.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was due to receive his US counterpart, Donald Trump, ahead of the summit starting Tuesday evening.
Last month, Trump promised to make Erdogan “very happy” when asked about Turkey’s efforts to secure F-110 jet engines and regain access to the F-35 program.
Analysts say Turkey wants to secure new engines for its flagship KAAN stealth fighter project, as Ankara seeks to join the exclusive club of nations producing fifth-generation combat aircraft, which notably includes the United States, China and Russia.
In 2019, Washington expelled Turkey from the F-35 program two years after Ankara acquired a Russian S-400 missile defense system.
Ankara’s foreign ministry said Israel’s pushback could not “conceal the Netanyahu government’s genocide in Gaza, its policies of occupation and annexation, and its destabilizing actions in the region”.
The ministry added that Turkey wanted to see peace, stability, and prosperity throughout the region and that “with this understanding, we once again call on Israel to pursue a constructive and peaceful policy.”
Netanyahu on Monday told Fox News: “I don’t think (Turkey) should be given F-35s or the engines for their fighter jets, because that’ll upset the power balance in the Middle East, which is ultimately guaranteed by Israeli air superiority and also by, I think, by America’s posture in the Middle East.”
Erdogan is counting on his good relations with Trump and his country’s return to favor with Washington, notably over its support for Ukraine, to secure the delivery of six jets, for which payment has already been made.
By AFP
