US-Turkey ties at risk over F-35 jets
Aircraft issue highlights ‘tangle’ of problems between the NATO allies
ANKARA — The US attempt to block the delivery of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey has put the bilateral ties between the two NATO allies at risk, said an aide to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
In 2014, the Turkish government placed an order for the first two jets in a projected fleet of 100 F-35A aircraft.
The jets were developed and built by US defense contractor Lockheed Martin for the United States, Britain, Australia, Italy, Norway, Turkey, the Netherlands, Denmark and Canada, in a project worth about $400 billion, making it the world’s most expensive arms program.
Turkish firms including Aselsan, Kale Aviation, Roketsan and Turkish Aerospace Industries also took part in the production of the jets.
Ties between Ankara and Washington have soured in recent years over differences on Turkey’s military action in Syria and the US’ refusal to extradite cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is accused by Turkey of masterminding the failed coup in 2016.
Tensions further rose as Turkey signed a deal worth $2.5 billion to purchase the Russian S-400 defense system, a move that raised concerns among its NATO partners.
Although Turkey has been a co-partner of the F-35 project and already paid for part of its share, a group of US senators in April drafted a bill calling for excluding Ankara from the project, citing Turkey’s defense deal with Russia and its imprisonment of the evangelical pastor, Andrew Brunson.
Brunson, a US citizen who has lived in Turkey for over 20 years, was arrested in the aftermath of the botched coup. He was charged with “espionage” and “terrorism”, and faces up to 35 years in jail.
The US administration led by President Donald Trump has called for his release.
Last week, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said Turkey would respond if the US Congress passed the bill on blocking the delivery of the jets.
The Turkish government has shown its willingness to amend its ties with the US, but Washington seems to have no response, said Ilnur Cevik, a presidential aide.
“We want to overcome the problems with the United States. Close cooperation with the United States is essential,” said Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, in its announcement to hold elections on June 24.
“Erdogan’s remarks meant ‘Let’s open a new chapter’. Did the United States understand this?” Cevik asked.
Murat Yetkin, editor-inchief of Hurriyet Daily News, said that now almost all existing problems between Turkey and the US have been tangled with each other and reflected in the F-35 issue.
The jet controversy could cause a real collapse of the Turkey-US ties, he warned.
A crucial meeting between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu in Washington scheduled on June 4 will be an opportunity to put all the matters on the table.