US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he would lift sanctions on Turkey and make a decision on the possible sale of F-35 aircraft to Turkey, as he began his meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the NATO summit.
In response to a question about the measures imposed under the law to confront opponents of the United States by imposing sanctions on them, Trump told reporters, “We will lift the sanctions” on Türkiye.
In 2020, Washington imposed sanctions under this law on Türkiye due to its acquisition of Russian S-400 air defense systems. It also excluded Ankara from the F-35 fighter jet programme, a move Türkiye described as unfair and illegal.
Today, two informed sources expected that Trump would announce his support for a possible sale of this type of fighter during his visit to Ankara, although the obstacles in terms of the law and the US Congress have not yet been completely resolved.
Trump said, “A decision will be made” in this regard, adding that he would also discuss trade issues with Erdogan.
For his part, Erdogan said that he hopes for a positive result regarding Ankara’s desire to buy F-35 fighter jets.
He added that Trump had promised to provide Türkiye with five aircraft and that he “always keeps his promises.”
Türkiye was among the buyers and manufacturers of F-35 aircraft before it was excluded from the program in 2020 due to its purchase of Russian S-400 air defense systems. Türkiye described this measure as unfair, and demanded that the planes it paid for be recovered, returned to the program, or compensated for their price.
Since Trump took office, both sides have publicly expressed their desire to resolve the issue.
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