British Prime Minister Keir Starmer arrived in Türkiye on Monday afternoon for a highly anticipated meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Unlike other leaders, Starmer’s plane landed at a military base in the capital, Ankara, and he was greeted by National Defense Minister Yaşar Güler. This choice of landing site is likely to fuel rumors that the two countries have agreed to acquire Eurofighter Typhoon jets.
British Secretary of State for Defence John Healey and Air Chief Marshal Harv Smyth, chief of the Air Staff, accompanied Starmer at Mürted Air Base Command. The base was at the heart of a 2016 coup attempt by the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) as the "command center" of the putschists who were defeated due to public resistance. The base also hosts an aircraft maintenance center of Türkiye's leading defense company, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAŞ or TAI).
Starmer was also accompanied by two of the said fighter jets, according to Turkish media reports, though this was not officially confirmed.
