Failed To Get F-35 Fighter Jets From America, President Erdogan Affirms Turkey's Refund Of Rp. 19.8 Trillion

Illustration of the F-35 stealth fighter jet. (Wikimedia Commons/USA Air Force)

JAKARTA - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoan stressed that his party will be determined to get back the US$1.4 billion or around Rp.

This was emphasized by President Erdogan in a press statement, after a visit to the African region, to visit three countries, including Angola, Togo and Nigeria.

"We will get back 1.4 billion US dollars one way or another," President Erdogan told reporters on the plane on his way back from Africa, citing Yenisafak Oct. 21.

President Erdoan added that issues related to this have been discussed by the Turkish Defense Minister together with the United States Secretary of Defense.

He further explained that he is confident that positive steps will be taken, and this will also be discussed with President Joe Biden at the G20 meeting this weekend in Rome, Italy.

"We will not allow anyone to abuse Turkey's rights," said President Erdogan.

To note, Turkey, which attempted to purchase Patriot missile air defense systems from the United States as a NATO ally in 2017, felt the purchase process was protracted and fruitless.

This turned Ankara away by signing a contract with Russia to acquire its S-400 defense systems. This led to Washington expelling Turkey from its F-35 stealth fighter jet program, for which Ankara had already surrendered development funds, calling the S-400 a threat to the alliance.

Turkey stressed the S-400 will not be integrated into NATO systems and pose no threat to the alliance or its arsenal.

Earlier, citing Reuters on October 17, President Erdogan said there was a proposal from the United States to replace the F-35 funds with F-16 fighter jets, with Turkey earlier this month proposing to purchase 40 of the fighter jets and nearly 80 modernization kits.

The request for the F-16 fighter jet is likely to have difficulty getting approval from the US Congress, where sentiment towards Turkey has deteriorated over the past few years, mainly because of Ankara's purchase of the S-400 and its troubled human rights track record.

Ankara's purchase of the S-400 also triggered US sanctions. In December 2020, Washington blacklisted the Turkish Defense Industry Directorate, including its head Ismail Demir and three other employees.