President Erdogan: President Biden Promises To Do His Best For F-16 Fighter Jet Sales

JAKARTA - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said United States President Joe Biden would do his best, regarding Turkey's desire to buy F-16 fighter jets from its ally.

This was conveyed by President Erdogan on the presidential plane on his way home after attending the G20 Summit in Rome, Italy last weekend, and canceling the COP26 Climate Change Summit in Glasgow, Scotland earlier this week.

The two heads of state, who were expected to meet in Glasgow, held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit on Sunday to discuss the state of relations between the two countries.

Turkey has submitted a request to buy 40 Lockheed Martin-made F-16 fighter jets and nearly 80 modernization kits for the existing aircraft. US lawmakers have sought to block the sale.

This application was made in exchange for Turkey's exclusion from the F-35 stealth fighter jet program, for which Turkey had already surrendered US$1.4 billion for buying the S-400 Triumf air defense system from Russia.

US President Joe Biden has pledged to make every effort to convince the US Senate to smooth out the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, with the probability of the deal moving forward estimated at 50/50, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced.

"I don't see any negative attitude from America in this regard. Instead, we hope to resolve (negotiations on) this sensitive issue regarding relations between the two countries in a meeting between our foreign ministers, our defense ministers," President Erdogan explained. November.

"President Joe Biden told me, 'we may not get results very quickly. You know, (the approval) goes through two stages, the House and the Senate. As you know, it's a 50-50 situation, but I'm going to do my best,' " said President Erdogan imitating President Biden.

"I said to him, 'I believe you can achieve this.' Hopefully, our defense ministers will continue their talks with each other," Erdogan added.

The president also said he discussed the topic of the F-35 with President Biden, but did not elaborate on the nature of the conversation. Turkey is seeking to get back the $1.4 billion it invested in the program, before being dumped out for buying Russia's S-400 air defense system. Last week, a bipartisan group of House lawmakers wrote to President Biden, urging him not to sell. F-16 jets to Turkey, pointing out that Ankara's recent announcement of its intention to purchase additional Russian S-400s, the US "cannot afford to compromise our country's security by sending US-made aircraft to treaty allies who continue to behave like enemies." "

The letter also pointed to the territorial disputes between Turkey, Greece and Egypt in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, pointing out that "as long as President Erdogan advances his expansionist project" in the area, "Turkey will continue to threaten our national security and the security of our closest allies in the region - Greece, Israel and Cyprus."

Last month, Ismail Demir, the head of the US-backed Turkish Defense Industry, told local media that Ankara might buy Russian Su-35 or Su-57 fighter jets if Washington blocked the sale of F-16s to the country.

Last week, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also warned that Ankara could buy Russian planes if the US fails to deliver the promised F-35s, or return the $1.4 billion Turkey invested in the fifth-generation jet project.