Turkey’s President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, are pushing for the lifting of CAATSA sanctions in order to acquire F-35 fighter jets from the US. This move was confirmed in recent statements, where they mentioned working towards a “creative formula” to resolve the issue.
Recent reports suggest that Turkey and the US are exploring options to stockpile the Russian-made S-400s to lift CAATSA sanctions and rejoin the F-35 procurement program. However, this would not involve co-production.
Erdogan expressed concern over the negative impact of the sanctions on trust between Turkey and the US, emphasizing that they go against the spirit of the Alliance. The US has indicated that lifting CAATSA sanctions could be considered after resolving the S-400 issue. In response, the Hellenic American Leadership Council has urged US Senate committees to reject the request, citing Turkish violations of US law and its destabilizing actions in the region.
As long as Turkey maintains ties with Russia, supports extremist groups, and engages in aggressive behavior, the authors argue that access to F-35s should not be granted.
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