Trump Kills Turkey Sanctions, Dangles F-35s, Leaving Netanyahu Fuming
Trump Kills Turkey Sanctions, Dangles F-35s, Leaving Netanyahu Fuming Published By, Last Updated: July 09, 2026, 17:33 IST Trump announced US will lift sanctions on
Trump Kills Turkey Sanctions, Dangles F-35s, Leaving Netanyahu Fuming Published By, Last Updated: July 09, 2026, 17:33 IST Trump announced US will lift sanctions on Turkey over its S-400 purchase. F-35 sale to Turkey is undecided, facing congressional and Israeli opposition. US President Donald Trump with Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of the NATO Summit in Ankara. (AFP) President Donald Trump told reporters in Ankara on Tuesday that Washington would remove the sanctions it imposed on Turkey in 2020 over Ankara’s purchase of the Russian S-400 air defence system. “We are going to be taking the sanctions off," Trump said, standing alongside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Bestepe Presidential Compound during the NATO summit. On the separate question of whether Turkey can buy American F-35 stealth fighters, Trump stopped short of a firm commitment. “It’s a decision we’re going to make," he said, calling the jet the best plane by far. The New York Times had reported a day earlier, citing four senior administration officials, that Trump was expected to tell Erdogan he was prepared to let Turkey rejoin the programme. Why Turkey Lost Its F-35 Seat Turkey signed on as a founding industrial partner in the F-35 programme, and Turkish manufacturers built an estimated 900 components for the aircraft, while Ankara had planned to buy around 100 F-35As.
That ended in July 2019, when Turkey took delivery of the Russian S-400 missile system, prompting Washington to expel it from the programme. In December 2020, the US added CAATSA sanctions against Turkey’s Presidency of Defence Industries, the state body running the country’s arms procurement, including export licence bans and financial restrictions. How Would A Reversal Work Getting Turkey back into the F-35 programme runs into the 2020 Defense Authorization Act, which bars transferring the jets to Ankara unless it no longer possesses the S-400 system or any related equipment. Congress wrote that provision without a presidential waiver, meaning Trump cannot simply overturn it by decree. Erdogan told reporters he hoped for a “favourable decision," adding that Turkey had previously been promised five jets under the original deal. Why Now The announcement came as Trump praised Turkey’s role in defusing tensions with Iran, saying Ankara had been more helpful than other NATO members on the issue, and describing the country as an extraordinary ally. The administration has already shown a willingness to bypass congressional resistance on Turkish defence deals. In late June it notified Congress of a $700 million engine sale for Turkey’s domestically built KAAN fighter programme, overriding a hold placed by Democratic Representative Gregory Meeks.
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