WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden has sent a letter to leaders of key Capitol Hill committees informing them of his intention to start the formal notification process for the sale of Lockheed Martin F-16 aircraft to Ankara once Turkiye completes Sweden’s NATO accession procedure.
In the letter to the top Democratic and Republican members of the Senate Foreign Relations and House of Representatives Foreign Affairs committees, President Biden asked Congress to approve the sale “without delay,” a US official claimed.
Earlier, the White House has also sent a letter to members of Congress urging endorsement of the $20 billion sale of F-16 aircraft and modernization kits to Turkiye, Reuters reported.
Biden Asks US Congress to Approve F-16 sale to Ankara ‘Without Delay’
On Tuesday, Turkiye’s parliament has ratified Sweden’s NATO membership bid, clearing a major obstacle to expanding the NATO following 20 months of delay. Reuters said the letter was sent on Wednesday, and that Biden’s administration has not yet officially notified Congress of plans for the sale of F-16 aircraft.
Ankara’s delay in approving the ratification had been a major hurdle to winning congressional approval for the jet agreement. Legislators had said they were also awaiting Ankara’s approval of Sweden’s NATO membership- including Erdogan’s signature — before deciding whether to endorse the sale.
However, the White House did not reply to a request for remarks. The US State Department asked Ankara to formally finalize Sweden’s NATO ratification. The State Department also declined to provide an exact timeline on the official notification process for the F-16 sale.
Ankara in October 2021 asked to purchase $20 billion of F-16 fighters and about 80 modernization kits for its current warplanes.
Finland and Sweden applied to enter NATO following Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. While Finnish membership was sealed last year, Sweden’s bid had been held up by Hungary and Turkiye.
All NATO members require to approve applications from nations seeking to join the military alliance. When Finland and Sweden asked to join, Ankara raised objections over what it said was the two nations’ protection of groups it deems terrorists.
