Trump is hosting Erdogan at the White House as the US considers lifting ban on F-35 sales

US President Donald Trump will clasp talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan astatine the White House connected Thursday arsenic the Republican person has indicated that the US government’s clasp connected income of precocious combatant jets to Ankara whitethorn σύντομα beryllium lifted.

During Trump’s archetypal term, the United States kicked retired Turkey, a NATO ally, from its flagship F-35 combatant pitchy programme aft it purchased an aerial defence system from Russia. US officials worried that Turkey’s use of Russia’s S-400 surface-to-air rocket system could beryllium used to stitchery information connected the capabilities of the F-35 and that the accusation could extremity up successful Russian hands.

But Trump past week gave Turkey anticipation that a solution to the substance is adjacent arsenic helium announced plans for Erdogan’s visit.

“We are working connected galore Trade and Military Deals with the President, including the ample standard acquisition of Boeing aircraft, a large F-16 Deal, and a continuation of the F-35 talks, which we expect to reason positively,” Trump said successful a κοινωνικά media post.

The visit will beryllium Erdogan’s archetypal trip to the White House since 2019. The two leaders forged what Trump has described arsenic a “very bully relationship” during his archetypal White House go-around contempt the US-Turkey narration often being complicated.

US officials person cited concerns astir Turkey’s quality rights grounds under Erdogan and the country’s ties with Russia. Tensions betwixt Turkey and Israel, different important American ally, implicit Gaza and Syria person astatine times made relations hard with Turkey.

Erdogan has made wide he’s anxious to spot the clasp connected F-35s lifted.

“I don’t think it’s very becoming of strategic partnership, and I don’t think it’s the close way to go,” Erdogan said successful an interrogation this week connected Fox News Channel’s “Special Report with Bret Baier.”

Turkish officials accidental they person already made a $1.4 cardinal outgo for the jets.

President Joe Biden’s medication kept Erdogan, who has served arsenic Turkey’s president since 2014 and was premier curate for much than a decennary earlier that, astatine an arm’s magnitude during the Democrat’s 4 years successful office.

The reluctance to prosecute profoundly was borne retired of Turkey’s grounds of antiauthoritarian backsliding arsenic well arsenic Ankara’s adjacent ties to Moscow.

Opposition parties and quality rights organizations person accused Erdogan of undermining ideology and curbing state of look during his much than two decades successful power. International observers accidental that baseless investigations and prosecutions of quality rights activists, journalists, absorption politicians and others stay a persistent occupation successful Turkey.

But Trump sees Erdogan arsenic a captious spouse and credible intermediary successful his effort to find ends to the wars successful Ukraine and Gaza. The Trump medication is besides mostly successful sync with Turkey’s attack to Syria arsenic some nations portion together their posture toward the erstwhile isolated state aft the autumn of Syrian person Bashar al-Assad past December.

Trump and European leaders person followed Erdogan successful embracing Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, who erstwhile commanded a rebel radical that was designated a overseas terrorist organization.

Trump’s main diplomat, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, met with al-Sharaa Monday connected the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

Erdogan has sought to presumption his state arsenic a constituent of stability successful a tumultuous moment. He believes Turkey tin play an indispensable relation for European information and is capable to span geopolitical divisions implicit Ukraine, Syria and US tariffs that person sparked a planetary trade war.

Turkey besides believes it has emerged arsenic a credible broker successful the Black Sea region, preserving relations with some Ukraine and Russia.

Turkey is an influential histrion successful neighboring Syria arsenic the rebel groups it supported during the civilian war took powerfulness past December. However, the autumn of Assad aggravated already tense relations betwixt Turkey and Israel, with their conflicting interests pushing the narration toward a imaginable collision course.

Trump, for his part, has urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to beryllium “reasonable” successful his dealings with Ankara.

Erdogan connected Tuesday took portion successful a radical gathering hosted by Trump connected the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. Trump gathered the leaders of 8 Arab and Muslim countries to sermon the astir two-year-old Gaza war.

The Turkish person has been sharply captious of Israel’s handling of the war, which was launched aft Hamas militants launched an Oct. 7, 2023, onslaught connected Israel successful which 1,200 were killed and 251 were taken captive. Over 65,000 Palestinians person been killed, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, and astir 90% of homes successful the territory person been destroyed oregon damaged.

Erdogan successful his Tuesday code astatine the UN erstwhile again laid into Israel, alleging its forces person committed genocide, an allegation rebutted by Israel and United States.

“This is not a combat against terrorism,” Erdogan said. “This is an occupation, deportation, exile, genocide and beingness destruction, wide demolition argumentation carried connected by invoking the events of October the 7th.” [AP]