Ankara sees cautious optimism in ties with US after F-16 deal

ANKARA

A deal between Türkiye and the United States on the sale of 40 new F-16s to the former creates a window of opportunity for further improving the bilateral ties should the latter show more respect to the Turkish sensitivities in combatting terrorism.

Speaking at a press conference on Feb. 14, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Öncü Keçeli assessed the current state of ties between Ankara and Washington after the Turkish ratification of Swedish membership to NATO, a move which prompted the latter’s accomplishment of the congressional approval for the sale of F-16s to Türkiye.

“We expect that the completion of [the processes for] Sweden’s membership [to NATO] and [the congressional approval of] F-16s will introduce a new window of opportunity as the two allied countries better understand each other on the basis of mutual respect and interests,” Keçeli told reporters.

However, Keçeli recalled that there are still serious bilateral problems, especially in the field of fighting terrorism. “We want the U.S. to completely cease its relationship with the PKK’s affiliations in Syria,” he said, referring to the ongoing U.S. partnership with the YPG in the fight against ISIL. Türkiye designates YPG as a Syrian offshoot of the terrorist organization PKK, and therefore as a terrorist organization.

Keçeli said Türkiye has also expectations about ending the presence of FETÖ on U.S. soil. Türkiye designated FETÖ as a terror organization after the group’s coup attempt in 2016. The Turkish demand for the extradition of Fethullah Gülen from the U.S. has not been positively responded to.

“You cannot say that you are an ally of a country and then support a terrorist organization that threatens the security of that country, tries to bomb its capital, and martyrs our soldiers,” he said, referring to FETÖ.

“We will continue to discuss all these issues with the U.S. We are of the opinion that we can strengthen our relations with the U.S. in all the fields such as combatting terrorism and the defense industry. We will have political and technical talks with the U.S. in the coming period,” he suggested.

 Fidan to attend the Munich conference

Keçeli also informed that Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will attend the Munich Security Conference, where he will hold bilateral talks with counterparts from more than 20 countries. The main agenda will be the Israeli offensive against the civilians in Gaza. From Munich, Fidan will travel to Rio de Janeiro to attend the G20 foreign ministerial meeting.