White House to supply Turkey with aircraft engines for Turkey's first fighter jet, despite Congressional objections - Reuters

The administration of US President Donald Trump intends to approve the sale of dozens of jet engines to Turkey worth hundreds of millions of dollars, despite the objections of some members of Congress. This was reported by Reuters, citing four sources familiar with the situation. The deal would be a gesture to Ankara ahead of the NATO summit in the Turkish capital next month.

The engines, made by General Electric, are designed to power Turkey's first indigenously developed fighter jet, KAAN, a project launched in 2016 as part of Ankara's efforts to strengthen defense self-reliance. According to one of the sources, the cost of the package will exceed $700 million. It is noted that relations between Washington and Ankara under Trump remain generally warm, but they are overshadowed by a long-standing dispute over Turkey’s exclusion from the F-35 fighter program and sanctions imposed after the country acquired Russian S-400 systems, which the United States considers a threat to its security.

Asked about engines, the F-35 program and plans for the Ankara summit, Trump said, “I'll probably do something that will make them very happy.” Gregory Meeks, D-New York, the largest Democratic caucus on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, disapproved of the deal in an informal review and accused the administration of not making a good-faith effort to explain to him the implications of the sale for bilateral relations and the S-400 issue. Despite his objections, a decision on the sale is expected to be finalized in the coming days, after which the State Department will send a formal notification to Congress, since congressional objections are not binding. Vice President J.D. Vance said that at the same time, Turkey's compliance with the requirements of American legislation to receive the F-35 is being verified.

Earlier, US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack said that Ankara was preparing to abandon the Russian S-400 to open the way for the purchase of the F-35, and that these issues could be resolved “within the next four to six months.”