Turkey Protests As US Senate Approves Ban on Sale of F-35s

Turkish PM Says US Bill Blocking F-35 Sales ‘Unfortunate’ (excerpt)

(Source: Yeni Şafak; posted June 19, 2018)

The U.S. Senate's decision to pass a bill prohibiting the sale of Lockheed Martin's F-35 jets to Turkey is unfortunate and against the spirit of strategic partnership, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım said on Tuesday.

“The decision is unfortunate, but Turkey is not without alternatives. It is regrettable that the U.S. Senate has made such a move, which is against the spirit of strategic partnership,” he said.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said on Tuesday that the first F-35 jet would be delivered to Turkey on Thursday. “The rollout ceremony for Turkey’s first F-35 aircraft will be held on June 21,” Çavuşoğlu said.


Ismail Demir, head of Turkey’s Undersecretariat for Defense Industries, tweeted this morning that “Preparations for the F-35 delivery ceremony, which will take place on June 21, are continuing.”

The U.S. Senate passed a $716 billion defense policy bill late on Monday, taking the first step to blocking the delivery of F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets to Turkey.

The Republican-controlled Senate voted 85-10 for the annual National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, which authorizes U.S. military spending but is generally used as a vehicle for a broad range of policy matters.

The Senate NDAA also includes an amendment prohibiting sales to Turkey of F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets made by Lockheed Martin Corp unless Trump certifies that Turkey is not threatening NATO, purchasing defense equipment from Russia or detaining U.S. citizens.

The amendment claimed that purchasing the S-400 system from Russia increases tensions and risks to the NATO alliance. It also demands the release of American Pastor Andrew Brunson, who is facing terror charges in Turkey.

Before it can be legislated, the bill must be reconciled with one already passed by the House of Representatives. That compromise measure must then be passed by both chambers and signed into law by Trump. (end of excerpt)

Click here for the full story, on the Yeni Safak website.

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Senate Approves Ban on Sale of U.S. F-35s to Turkey Over Russia Deal

(Source: Radio Free Europe; issued June 19, 2018)

The U.S. Senate has passed a major defense bill that would block the sale of U.S. F-35 fighter jets to Turkey unless it abandons a deal to buy S-400 missile-defense systems from Russia.

The legislation, passed by 85-to-10 late on June 18, also contains a provision to block President Donald Trump's deal with China to allow the telecommunications giant ZTE to stay in business despite violations of U.S. sanctions against Iran and North Korea.

The two provisions targeting Turkey and ZTE are part of the massive National Defense Authorization Act, which authorizes over $700 billion in defense spending on military programs and weapons.

The House of Representatives has passed its own version of the bill, and the two measures must now be reconciled before a compromise measure can be passed and sent to Trump for his signature or veto.

Both the Senate and House have seen bipartisan efforts to stop the sale of the most advanced U.S. fighter jet to Turkey, a NATO ally that has an increasingly strained relationship with Washington.

Turkey is currently one of the partner countries in the F-35 program and had plans to buy about 100 of the stealth jets, which are manufactured by Lockheed Martin Corp.

The Senate bill would prevent delivery of the jets unless Trump certifies that Turkey is not threatening NATO, purchasing defense equipment from Russia, or detaining U.S. citizens.

NATO officials have repeatedly warned Turkey that the Russian S-400 systems it agreed to buy in 2016 are not compatible with NATO defenses, but Turkey has largely dismissed those concerns and proceeded with the Russian deal.

U.S. legislators in approving the provision also have cited concerns about Ankara's warming ties with Moscow under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his arrest of U.S. citizens and consulate staff as part of a purge of his opponents since an aborted coup against him in July 2016.

The Senate defense bill's provision to kill Trump's agreement to allow ZTE to resume purchases from U.S. technology companies so that it can stay in business is not included in the House version of the bill, which has a narrower ban on the Defense Department using equipment or services from ZTE or fellow Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei.

Republicans and Democrats expressed national security concerns about ZTE after it broke an agreement to discipline executives who had admitted to a conspiracy to evade U.S. sanctions by selling sensitive equipment to Iran and North Korea.

Under the Trump deal, ZTE would have to pay another $1 billion in fines for its sanctions violations in exchange for the United States dropping an earlier ban on its purchases of equipment from U.S. suppliers, which the company contended would put it out of business.

The move to block Trump's deal caused a plunge of almost 17 percent in ZTE's stock value in the first few minutes of trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange on June 19. The company's stock has fallen by about 60 percent as a result of the U.S. debate over its future.

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