US government will continue to support sale of F-16 fighter jets to Türkiye: Biden

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) - US President Joe Biden on Tuesday said that his government will continue to support the potential sale of F-16 fighter jets to Türkiye.

The remarks came during a closed-door meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Biden on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, where they discussed bilateral relations between the two countries, particularly trade and security issues, and regional developments, according to a Turkish Communications Directorate statement.

Biden thanked Erdogan for his efforts to help remove obstacles in the Istanbul grain deal and to resume the exports from Ukrainian ports, the statement said.

The US president also said that Türkiye is an "important actor" in Sweden's NATO accession process, it added.

Also, Biden conveyed his condolences to Erdogan over Sunday’s deadly terror attack in Istanbul.

At least six people were killed and 81 injured in Sunday's bomb blast, which the Turkish government confirmed was carried out by the terror group YPG/PKK.

The relations between Ankara and Washington have been strained in recent years due to US cooperation with the terrorist group YPG/PKK in Syria, its failure to extradite the wanted ringleader of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), disagreements over Türkiye’s purchase of Russia’s S-400 air defense system, and Washington's sanctions on Ankara.

The US has said it is cooperating with the YPG/PKK in northern Syria to fight the terrorist group Daesh/ISIS, but Turkish officials say using one terrorist group to fight another makes no sense, morally or otherwise.