Washington's endorsement of Ankara's procurement of 40 Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 40 fighter jets is not a done deal—yet. Just like "F-35 saga" years ago.
bulgarianmilitary.com
You US you Lose
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According to the Turkish publication
Aydinlik, the Congressional Research Service had already drawn up a comprehensive report last year.
This touched upon the potential supply of F-16s to Turkey and predefined circumstances that could terminate this arrangement.
One part of the report explicitly stated that if Turkey, at any point in time, “acts against US interests,” the procurement process could be put on hold. The report further clarified, “Approval of the sale will not prevent Congress or the Administration from halting or modifying the sale in response to Turkey’s actions that counteract US interests in the future.”
The current military trade and production relationship between Turkey and Russia could potentially trigger Washington to hit the pause button on supplying Block 70.
Aydinlik hypothesizes that Turkey might need to halt any new ground operations in Syria, cease excessive Aegean Sea flyovers, sever military ties with Russia, and refrain from shuttering the HDP [Halkların Demokratik Partisi or Peoples’ Democratic Party].
The outlined conditions for future F-16 shipments surface as Washington renews its discourse concerning
Turkey’s S-400 batteries. I
n recent weeks, many media outlets highlighted the proposition from various D.C. politicians to provide Ukraine with S-400s purchased from Russia. If this plan materializes, media speculation suggests Turkey might regain their position within Lockheed Martin’s F-35 program for the fifth-generation fighter.
Nolund literally says this
The visit to Turkey by the US State Department's No. 2 comes as another signal of the burgeoning positive momentum in Washington-Ankara ties after Turkey approved Sweden’s membership in NATO.
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