The Biden administration has given the green light to a $23 billion deal for the sale of F-16 warplanes to Turkey.
This decision comes after Turkey officially ratified Sweden’s NATO membership, as confirmed by the State Department.
Under the approved deal, Turkey is set to receive 40 new F-16s and upgrades for 79 existing jets in its fleet.
The State Department is now obligated to inform Congress about this agreement, along with a separate $8.6 billion sale of 40 F-35s to Greece.
The US held off on approving the transaction until Turkey’s instruments of ratification for Sweden’s NATO membership had been received in Washington.
This delay underscores the sensitivity of the negotiations, as reported by Agence France-Presse.
Turkey’s parliament finally ratified Sweden’s NATO membership, overcoming more than a year of delays that had previously disrupted Western efforts to demonstrate solidarity against Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
Initially, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had objections to Sweden’s NATO bid, citing concerns about Stockholm’s perceived support for Kurdish groups that Ankara deems as “terrorist” organizations.
Sweden responded by tightening anti-terrorism measures and meeting other security requirements requested by Erdoğan.
Erdoğan then turned to an unfulfilled US promise to supply a batch of F-16 fighter jets. However, this had faced resistance in Congress due to Turkey’s perceived human rights setbacks and tensions with fellow NATO member Greece.
Senator Ben Cardin, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, expressed his approval of the F-16 sale to Turkey, linking it to Turkey’s approval of Sweden’s NATO membership.
He emphasized the gravity of the decision, indicating that it was not made lightly.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken played a pivotal role in brokering the deal.
a trip to Ankara after the February 2023 earthquake, Blinken conveyed to the Turkish president three times that the plane deal depended on Turkey’s support for Sweden’s NATO bid.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee and House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committees, which review major foreign arms sales, may raise concerns or pose questions related to human rights or diplomatic issues, potentially causing delays or halting such deals.
After the formal notification by the US State Department, Congress has a 15-day window to raise objections. If there are no objections within this period, the sale is considered final.
Despite criticisms of Turkey by some members, US officials do not anticipate Congress blocking either sale. Meanwhile, Athens opposed the sale due to unresolved territorial disputes with Turkey in the energy-rich Mediterranean region.
The agreement with Turkey was contingent on Greece not obstructing the sale, and in return, Greece was granted more advanced F-35s.
This deal is seen as crucial for Turkey’s aging air force, which was expelled from the US-led F-35 joint strike fighter program in 2019 due to Turkey’s decision to acquire an advanced Russian missile defense system.
With Turkey’s approval of Sweden’s NATO membership, Hungary is now the only remaining holdout in an accession process initiated by Sweden and Finland in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has invited his Swedish counterpart to Budapest for discussions, though strains between the two countries have been hinted at.
