Turkey asks US if it can buy 40 F-16 jets to upgrade air force
Turkey has made a request to the United States to buy 40 Lockheed Martin-made F-16 fighter jets and nearly 80 modernisation kits for its existing warplanes, as the Nato ally looks to upgrade its air force after the purchase of F-35 jets fell through, sources familiar with the matter said.
The potential deal, worth billions of dollars, is still working its way through the Foreign Military Sales process, which is subject to approval by the US State Department, as well as the US Congress, which can block any such deal.
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The sources spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity.
"As a matter of policy, the department does not confirm or comment on proposed defence sales or transfers until they have been formally notified to Congress," a spokesperson for the State Department said.
The Turkish Embassy in Washington declined to comment to the news agency.
Ankara had ordered more than 100 F-35 jets, also made by Lockheed Martin, but was removed from the programme in 2019 after it acquired Russian S-400 missile defence systems.
Unprecedented tumult
The decades-old partnership between the Nato allies has gone through unprecedented tumult in the past five years over disagreements on Syria policy, Ankara’s closer ties with Moscow, its naval ambitions in the eastern Mediterranean, US charges against a state-owned Turkish bank and erosion of rights and freedoms in Turkey.
The request for the jets will likely have a difficult time getting approval from the US Congress, where sentiment towards Turkey has soured deeply over recent years, primarily due to Ankara's purchase of the S-400s and its problematic human rights track record.
Ankara's purchase of the S-400s has also triggered US sanctions. In December 2020, Washington blacklisted Turkey's Defence Industries directorate, its chief, Ismail Demir, and three other employees.
Since then, the US has repeatedly warned Turkey against buying further Russian weaponry. But last week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan indicated that Ankara still intended to buy a second batch of S-400s from Russia, a move that could deepen a rift with Washington.
Ankara has said it hopes for better ties under US President Joe Biden.
However, there is bipartisan support in the US Congress to push the Biden administration to put further pressure on Ankara, primarily over its purchase of Russian weapons and its human rights track record.
Reports of the Turkish request were first reported by Greek defence outlet Defence Review.
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