Biden throws support behind potential F-16 sale to Turkey

US President Joe Biden (right) listens to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Nato summit at the Ifema Congress Centre in Madrid yesterday. (AFP)

The Biden administration threw its support yesterday behind the potential sale of US F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, a day after Ankara lifted a veto of Nato membership for Finland and Sweden. Celeste Wallander, Assistant Secretary for Defense for International Security Affairs at Pentagon, told reporters on a call that strong Turkish defence capabilities would reinforce Nato’s defences. “The United States supports Turkey’s modernisation of its fighter fleet because that is a contribution to Nato security and therefore American security,” she said. “These plans are in the works. And, they need to be worked through our contracting processes,” she added. Turkey made a request in October to the United States to buy 40 Lockheed Martin-made F-16 fighters and nearly 80 modernisation kits for its existing warplanes. Washington had not previously openly expressed any opinion on the sale aside from saying all weapons sales would have to go through the necessary legal process. In March, the State Department wrote a letter to some members of the US Congress who had opposed the sale, saying “appropriate” US defence trade ties with Turkey would serve US interests. Wallander’s comments come on the heels of an 11th hour deal struck on Tuesday between Turkey, Finland and Sweden after four hours of talks, averting an embarrassing impasse at the gathering of 30 Nato leaders that aims to show resolve in the face of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. US President Joe Biden, speaking before his meeting with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the Nato summit in Madrid praised Erdogan’s efforts to help strike a deal with the Nordic countries. “I want to particularly thank you for what you did,” Biden said. The three nations signed a deal under which Ankara lifted its block on Finnish and Swedish membership, while the candidates pledged not to support the Kurdish militant PKK and YPG groups, or the network of US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, which Turkey blames for a failed 2016 coup attempt. US officials pushed back against any suggestion that Washington was backing the warplane request to remove Turkish objections to the entry of Sweden and Finland into Nato. “The US did not offer anything to Turkey and was not asked for anything by Turkey” as part of its agreement with Finland and Sweden, a senior administration official said. The official said US officials were engaged in ongoing technical talks about Turkey’s request to buy US F-16 fighter jets. Congress would have the final say about any such sales.