Erdogan: Trump Promised on F-35s, We Expect Fulfillment of the Promise

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stated that he received a promise from U.S. President Donald Trump regarding the F-35 fighter jets and is now expecting its fulfillment. In an interview with Al Jazeera, Erdogan emphasized that his expectations for resolving the issue surrounding the F-35s remain intact.

“We have received a promise from Trump regarding the F-35 fighter jets and are waiting for him to fulfill that promise,” the Turkish president said.

Turkey was removed from the international F-35 program in 2019 after acquiring the Russian S-400 missile defense systems. Washington argued that the operation of the Russian systems could pose a threat to the F-35 technology, particularly its stealth capabilities.

In 2020, the U.S. imposed sanctions on Turkey under the CAATSA law due to the acquisition of the S-400s. During the NATO summit held in Ankara in July, Trump announced that his administration intended to lift the sanctions imposed on Turkey under CAATSA. He also did not rule out Turkey's return to the F-35 program.

However, the issue of supplying American fighters remains unresolved. Resistance to a possible deal persists in the U.S. Congress, and the legislation passed in 2020 prohibits the Pentagon from transferring F-35 fighter jets to Turkey as long as Ankara operates the Russian S-400 systems.