Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he plans to discuss with his American counterpart Donald Trump the issue of F-35 and F-16 fighter jet deliveries, News.bg reports.
“During the previous term, when Mr. Trump was asked this question, he replied that Turkey paid for these F-35s, but did not receive them. You are not giving them. He said this to the press“, Erdogan recalled in an interview with Fox News.
“And now we will conduct negotiations on this issue again. We expect the United States to also do the necessary regarding both the F-35 and the F-16 - their production, maintenance, etc.,“, the Turkish president added.
Turkey was excluded from the F-35 development program in 2019 after purchasing the S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems from Russia. Ankara produced some of the components - fuselage elements and some systems for the fighters.
The American side stated that Turkey's return to the program is possible only on condition that it abandons the S-400.