F-16 fighters are the main component of the Turkish Air Force (Reuters)

The US Ambassador to Turkey, Jeff Flake, announced that Congress has officially “approved” the sale of F-16 fighters to Turkey, which ends months of negotiations between Washington and Ankara in this regard.

Flake said in a letter published by the US Embassy in Ankara, “Congress’s decision to approve Turkey’s acquisition of 40 F-16 fighters and 79 development kits constitutes significant progress.”

Flake stressed that Turkey's fleet of F-16 aircraft is of great importance to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and ensures the possibility of future interoperability between allies.

On January 26, the US government approved this deal worth $23 billion, three days after Ankara ratified Sweden’s accession to NATO.

The US Congress was informed on the same day of the Turkish request regarding the fighters, and the period for Congress to study the government communication to discuss the issue of selling the fighters ended, without expressing a reservation that would hinder the deal.

According to the Arms Export Control Act, the period specified for expressing reservations on arms deals in Congress is 15 days for NATO member states and 30 days for non-NATO member states.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee have the right to evaluate and object to arms sales to foreign countries.

The Foreign Relations Committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives announced their approval of the sale of F-16 aircraft to Turkey in their statements on January 26, the day the US administration’s notification reached Congress.

An American official explained that the United States did not agree to sell the fighters until it received from Turkey in concrete form the tools to ratify Sweden’s accession to NATO, which reflects the extremely sensitive nature of the negotiations that preceded reaching the agreement.

Turkey delayed Sweden's accession to NATO by requiring "simultaneous" American approval to sell fighters to it. Ankara had requested from the United States 40 new F-16 Block 70 fighter planes and equipment to modernize 79 fighters in the Turkish army fleet.

Source: Agencies