Letter from US politicians to Secretary of State Blinken

Ahead of the NATO Leaders’ Summit in Vilnius this week, the debate over Turkey continues in the US.

While Turkey’s disapproval of Sweden’s NATO membership is still on the agenda ahead of the critical summit, politicians in the US are discussing selling the F-16 to Turkey.

6 US politicians sent a letter to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. In the letter signed by the members of the House of Representatives Chris Papas, Gus Bilirakis, Frank Palone, John Sarbanis, Dina Titus and Nicole Malliotakis, who are known for their closeness to the Greek lobby, it is stated that certain conditions must be met in case of approval for the sale of the F-16.

“WE MUST ADD SIGNIFICANT MECHANISMS”

While noting that Turkey-Greece relations have recently started to normalize, the importance of Turkey’s possession of the Russian-made S-400 air defense system and the continuation of some diplomatic policies was stressed.

“If an agreement is reached on the sale of F-16s and modernization kits to Turkey, we must add meaningful mechanisms to prevent Turkey from using them in a way that threatens the national security of the United States,” the letter said. In the letter, it was claimed that Turkey blocked Sweden’s NATO membership and commented that “Turkey’s aggression in the region threatens stability in the Aegean.”

The letter, written by politicians known to be close to the Greek lobby, said: “The White House administration must ensure that US-supplied F-16s do not harm US national security, stability in the Middle East . Orient and the NATO alliance. For this reason, he concluded by saying: “If the sale of the F-16 and modernization kit to Turkey is approved, it must include clear and meaningful mechanisms for agreement that stop, delay or cancel Turkey’s use in a way that threatens the national security interests of the United States and the unity of NATO”.