Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Thursday that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and U.S. President Donald Trump share a "strong political will" to remove U.S. sanctions imposed on Türkiye under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), adding that both governments are taking concrete steps to resolve one of the most persistent disputes in bilateral ties.
Speaking in an interview with CNN Türk, Fidan said Erdoğan and Trump had instructed their governments to work toward lifting the sanctions following a meeting in Washington last September.
"Both our president and President Trump have a strong will to remove the CAATSA sanctions," Fidan said. "Our defense minister and I have been working intensively on this issue. Overall, relations are moving in a positive direction."
The sanctions were imposed after Türkiye acquired Russia's S-400 missile defense system, leading Washington to remove Ankara from the F-35 fighter jet program in 2019 and later sanction Türkiye's defense procurement agency under CAATSA.
Fidan said the sanctions remain the only major institutional obstacle in U.S.-Türkiye relations, arguing that many other restrictions imposed on Ankara over the past several years had already been lifted.
"There are specific decisions that can sometimes be taken against Türkiye, but the only permanent negative issue that remains today is the CAATSA sanctions," he said.
While declining to predict when the measures could be lifted, Fidan said administrative work was progressing and that the process would become visible as implementation advanced. He noted that executive action and congressional procedures do not always move at the same pace.
"There is no problem regarding political will within the administrations," Fidan noted. "The question is how the process in the U.S. Congress will proceed."
His remarks come days before leaders are expected to gather in Ankara for a NATO summit, where Erdoğan and Trump are scheduled to hold bilateral talks alongside broader alliance discussions.
Fidan said Trump's participation in the summit had been confirmed, describing it as significant both for NATO and for Türkiye.
"This alone is important and positive news for the alliance," he stressed, adding that Trump's decision reflected the relationship between the two leaders.
He said Erdoğan would also hold meetings with leaders from Britain, Germany, France, Italy and other allied countries during the summit, with many governments seeking to advance bilateral issues while in Ankara.
On defense cooperation, Fidan said lifting restrictions on F-35 sales and restoring Türkiye's role as a production partner should be viewed as separate issues.
"The removal of the sales ban is an easier matter," he said. "I believe that can happen after CAATSA."
Returning Türkiye to the multinational F-35 production consortium, however, would require a new decision by partner countries because Ankara was formally removed from the program through a collective decision, he added.
He declined to comment on whether Trump's recent reference to a possible "surprise" in bilateral relations concerned Türkiye's reported interest in acquiring U.S.-made jet engines for its domestically developed KAAN fighter aircraft.
Beyond defense ties, Fidan said the two NATO allies share strategic objectives on several regional issues, including ending the war in Ukraine, stabilizing Syria and Iraq, and promoting regional security.
Fidan also said Türkiye had worked closely with the United States on efforts to halt fighting in Gaza and maintained dialogue on broader regional stability.
Turning to the recent conflict involving Iran, Israel and the United States, Fidan described Türkiye as one of the key diplomatic actors seeking to prevent a wider regional war.
He said Türkiye, Qatar and Pakistan coordinated mediation efforts during the crisis and helped facilitate contacts aimed at securing a cease-fire.
"We were racing against time to stop the war," Fidan said, adding that trusted intermediaries were essential during periods of escalating tensions.
He argued that international pressure over the potential closure of the Strait of Hormuz played an important role in preventing further escalation because of concerns over global energy supplies, food security and economic stability.
Commenting on Israel's regional policies, Fidan sharply criticized the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, accusing it of fueling instability across the Middle East.
He said growing international criticism of Israel reflected changing global attitudes and argued that governments had become increasingly willing to impose restrictions, including limits on arms exports and sanctions targeting Israeli officials.
Fidan also pointed to the International Criminal Court's arrest warrants against Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders as evidence of increasing international pressure.
Türkiye suspended approximately $10 billion in bilateral trade with Israel earlier this year, a move Fidan said was intended primarily as a political message rather than an attempt to inflict direct economic damage.
He maintained that Israel had become "a problem for the entire international community," arguing that lasting regional stability would require broader international action rather than efforts by Türkiye alone.
The Turkish minister also underlined that his recent talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin should be viewed as part of President Erdoğan’s direct dialogue with Moscow, as Ankara seeks to maintain communication on Ukraine, the Caucasus, the Middle East, and other regional issues.
Fidan said the latest meeting focused on Russia’s position on the war in Ukraine and Putin’s current view of the diplomatic process.
“When I went there in May, we discussed this at length,” Fidan said. “There was a vision he put forward. We later spoke extensively with his negotiators. Now it was necessary to hear from Mr. Putin himself where we stand.”
Fidan noted that understanding the intentions of all sides is critical, warning that when governments lack direct communication, they are forced to plan according to worst-case scenarios.
He added that Russia’s positions also matter for Türkiye’s interests in the Caucasus peace process, Palestine, Gaza, Lebanon and Syria.
