Trump to reportedly endorse potential F-35 jet sale to Türkiye

U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to endorse the potential sale of F-35 fighter jets to Türkiye and tell President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan he’s prepared to restore Ankara’s access to the multinational program building the warplane, reports said Tuesday.

The move ⁠would be the biggest gesture yet from Trump – who is traveling to Ankara to attend a NATO summit – to Erdoğan, whom he regularly praises and sees as a close ally. The two countries have enjoyed warmer ties since Trump returned to office last year.

U.S. in 2020 imposed sanctions and removed Türkiye from the F-35 stealth fighter jet program, where Ankara was also a production partner, following its purchase of Russian S-400 ⁠air defense system.

Washington claimed the system would endanger the jets and is inoperable with NATO systems, while Ankara repeatedly said there is no conflict between the two and proposed a commission to study the issue. Türkiye also said it fulfilled its obligations on the F-35s and that its suspension broke the rules.

Ankara maintains that the jets would strengthen not only Türkiye, but also NATO.

The New York Times first reported the possible F-35 decision. Reuters also said Trump is expected to throw his support behind the potential sale, citing two sources familiar with the matter.

The NYT report, citing four senior administration officials, said the move would come weeks of behind-the-scenes efforts by national security officials to break the stalemate.

The officials said they expected Trump to at least signal his intention to move ahead with providing F-35s to Türkiye, though it remains unclear when that could happen, it said.

Details of how the administration would address congressional and legal restrictions remain unclear.

The newspaper noted that Trump’s plans could face opposition in Congress, which has previously restricted the sale of F-35s to Türkiye unless the administration determines that Ankara no longer possesses the S-400.

‘Make them very happy’

When Trump was asked late last month by reporters if he would have any “gifts” for Türkiye, he said: “I’m going to probably do something that will make them very happy.”

Speaking alongside Trump, Vice President JD Vance said a review was underway to see if Türkiye had complied with the U.S. laws so that ⁠it could receive the F-35 fighter jets.

“Pete and the entire team are reviewing this right now, because there are certain things that we have to certify have happened… in order to comply with American law,” he said, referring to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said last week that Erdoğan and Trump share a “strong political will” to remove U.S. sanctions imposed on Türkiye, though they declined to lay out a timetable.

In December, U.S. Ambassador to Türkiye Tom Barrack said the warm ties between the two leaders helped the sides hold “the most fruitful conversations we have had ⁠on this ‌topic in ‌nearly a decade.”

The news comes just a few weeks ⁠after the Trump administration formally notified Congress of its intention to sell dozens of jet engines worth more than $700 ⁠million for Türkiye’s first indigenous combat jet, called Kaan.

Some lawmakers from the U.S. Congress have raised objections, but the administration chose to go ahead with the sale anyway.

DAILYSABAH