To make up for the money Ankara spent on the last F-35 purchase, Türkiye threatened consequences if the US did not send F-16 fighter jets to this country.
“We wanted to purchase the F-16, but you never gave it to us. You made a commitment to fulfil it, but you didn’t. About $1.4 billion was spent. There will be repercussions if you don’t deliver “At a gathering of young people on January 29, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan mentioned the US.
More than 100 F-35A fighters built by US Lockheed Martin were ordered by Turkey, however after purchasing the Russian-made S-400 air defence system in 2019, Turkey was kicked out of the programme. In October 2021, President Erdogan stated that Washington had suggested selling F-16s to make up for the $ 1.4 billion that Ankara had committed in the F-35 programme.
To upgrade the current fighter, Turkey wants the US to sell it 40 F-16s and nearly 80 spare parts. The US Congress is unlikely to approve the deal, though, if Turkey does not agree to Sweden and Finland’s accession to NATO. The agreement is still under informal review.
On January 18, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu urged President Joe Biden’s administration to be more forceful and convince the US Congress to ratify the pact. He informed US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that the F-16 sale should not be conditional on Ankara’s acceptance of the two Nordic nations into NATO.
Since Ankara received the S-400 systems from Moscow in 2019, relations between the two NATO members have been strained. The desire of Ankara to begin an operation was a topic of disagreement between the two nations. Syria’s militarization and the restoration of ties with Damascus In the meantime, Turkey asked that the US cease backing Syrian Kurdish parties that it views as terrorist organisations.
Additionally, the dispute over Aegean Sea sovereignty between Turkey and Greece, another NATO member, has a detrimental impact on the US congress’s stance toward Ankara.
Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen stated on January 18 that President Erdogan’s continuous attacks on US Kurdish friends in Syria, as well as strengthened ties with Russia and the delay in Sweden and Finland’s ratification, were all causes for concern. “We must ensure that those problems are handled before Turkey can get F-16s.”
