Netanyahu says US F-35 jet sale to Türkiye would ‘destroy’ Mideast power balance

The US sale of F-35 stealth warplanes to Türkiye would “destroy” the balance of power in the Middle East, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday.

“It would destroy the power balance in the Middle East, because Türkiye, I think, has aggressive aspirations,” Netanyahu told CNN, adding: “When you give them that power, you’re going to see aggression in its wake.”

Netanyahu said ⁠in a CNN interview that despite occasional disagreements ⁠with U.S. President Donald Trump on Iran, they see “eye to eye” on the big things related to handling Tehran. Netanyahu said ⁠it ⁠was too early to say what would happen after Washington and Tehran signed an interim peace deal.

“The President believes ⁠that he can stop Iran‘s nuclear program,” Netanyahu told CNN, but added that he has his doubts.

“On ⁠the ‌big ‌things we see ⁠eye to ‌eye, and occasionally we don’t, but ⁠we’re true allies,” ⁠he said.