Turkey confident over delivery of F-35s despite Congress move

Serkan Demirtaş - ANKARA

Turkey’s top diplomat has expressed his confidence that the United States administration will not block the delivery of the Joint Strike Fighters, the F-35s, to Turkey despite some measures being discussed in the U.S. Congress.

“I have no concerns. Because this is a substantial legal agreement that includes the joint production of some materials. We have made our payments regularly and this deal has nothing to do with our procurement of the S-400s,” Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu told a group of reporters late on May 29.

Turkey is an important NATO member and wants to meet its need for weapons from its allies, Çavuşoğlu said, while urging allied countries not to create arbitrary blockages on these issues.

“If I need such weapons, I will certainly procure my immediate needs from somewhere. But I do not think there will be a problem. In many resolutions that stipulate sanctions, Congress leaves the last word to the administration,” he said.

Turkey will receive its first F-35 fighter from the U.S. on June 21.