Enlarge image
F-16 fighter jet
Photo: Jana Rodenbusch / REUTERS
The US sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey is a done deal. "Congress's decision to authorize Turkey's purchase of 40 F-16 aircraft and 79 modernization kits is a big step forward," the US Embassy in Ankara quoted the ambassador on Sunday on the online service X, formerly Twitter Jeff Flake. A 14-day deadline for Congress to object to the deal expired at the weekend.
After Turkey agreed to Sweden joining NATO, the US government approved the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Ankara. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had previously linked his country's approval to the approval of the fighter jets from the USA.
The State Department in Washington informed the US Congress on January 26th about the planned arms deal worth 23 billion dollars, the equivalent of 21 billion euros. Congress could have objected within two weeks, but it did not.
In response to Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, traditionally non-aligned Sweden applied for NATO membership together with its neighbor Finland in May 2022. Finland was able to join the military alliance last April after the consent of all members. Sweden is still awaiting Hungarian approval.
lki/AFP