Türkiye will not be buying F-16 fighter jets from the United States if restrictions are imposed on their use, its top diplomat said Tuesday, referring to a bill approved by American lawmakers, creating a new hurdle to any Turkish purchase.
Ankara has been voicing its firm opposition to conditions on the sale of the Lockheed Martin-made F-16s sought by the U.S. House of Representatives and has called on the U.S. not to fall for the "game" being played by certain lawmakers.
The House last month approved legislation that would bar the sale to Ankara unless the Biden administration certifies that doing so is essential to U.S. national security. It also includes a description of concrete steps taken to ensure they are not used for "unauthorized overflights" of Greece.
"Technical talks are going on very well but we would not agree to buy a product in a way that could tie our hands," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu told an interview with private broadcaster Haber Global TV.
"Why should we buy a product that we can’t use? We’re expecting the U.S. administration to continue to work to convince Congress for the sale," he said.
U.S. President Joe Biden has said he would work to convince lawmakers to deliver the F-16 jets for Türkiye’s air force. A Turkish delegation flew to Washington on Aug. 15 to follow up on Biden’s pledge.
Çavuşoğlu said there was a Greek lobbying campaign in Congress against the sale, but stressed that "it is not binding."
Türkiye and Greece have been at odds over issues ranging from overflights and the status of Aegean islands to maritime boundaries, hydrocarbon resources in the Mediterranean and the ethnically split island of Cyprus.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in May said Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis "no longer exists for him" after his lobbying effort against Türkiye in Congress to block the sale of the F-16s.
Last month’s bill marks the latest effort by the House, known for its anti-Ankara stance that has repeatedly damaged bilateral relations, to exert control over the sale of the Lockheed Martin aircraft to Türkiye.
Türkiye in October last year made a request to buy 40 F-16 fighters and nearly 80 modernization kits to upgrade its aging fleet, in what is estimated to be a $6 billion deal.
The process to finalize the defense bill, known as NDAA, is lengthy, and the Senate will also have to back similar language before it can be sent to Biden’s desk to be signed into law. Revisions to the bill in its current form are all but certain. However, the president can veto such legislation.
The sale of U.S. weapons to Türkiye became contentious after Ankara acquired Russian-made S-400 defense missile systems. The deal triggered U.S. sanctions as well as Türkiye’s removal from the F-35 fighter jet program.