UPDATE - US ‘strongly values’ partnership with Türkiye

ADDS BACKGROUND

By Rabia Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - The US “strongly values” its partnership with NATO ally Türkiye, State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel said Thursday.

Patel told reporters at a news conference that the US and Türkiye “have a long-standing and deep bilateral defense ties.”

Regarding the potential sale of F-16 fighter jets to Türkiye, Patel cited US President Biden’s remarks last June when he said Washington “should sell” F-16s to Türkiye.

“However, when it comes to specific arms transfers, we declined to comment until there's a formal notification process with Congress,” he added.

His remarks came a day after Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu met his US counterpart Antony Blinken in Washington, DC to discuss ties, the sale of F-16 fighter jets and regional issues.

Ankara made a request to Washington in October for 40 F-16 jets and modernization kits. The State Department last week informally notified Congress of the potential sale.

Cavusoglu told reporters after the meeting that Türkiye's request for the fighter jets and Sweden and Finland's NATO bids are “not related.”

"If the (Biden) administration stands firm, this issue would be resolved,” he said.

Turkish-US relations have been strained in recent years due to US support for the YPG/PKK terror group in northern Syria and disagreements concerning Türkiye’s purchase of Russia’s S-400 air defense system in 2017.

In 2019, under then-President Donald Trump, the US removed Türkiye from the F-35 joint strike fighter program because Ankara purchased the S-400. Ankara has repeatedly underlined that the S-400 poses no risk to the F-35s.