US will lift sanctions on Turkey, possibly sell F-35 fighter jets, Trump says

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced that Washington would lift U.S. sanctions on Turkey that were imposed in 2020 over Ankara’s purchase of Russian defense missiles, while expressing a willingness to sell the fellow NATO ally F-35 fighter jets.

The move would be a massive gesture from Trump to Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan whom he considers a close ally and would remove a major long-standing irritant in bilateral ties.

Even as Washington and Ankara have enjoyed warmer ties under Trump, Turkey’s 2019 acquisition of the Russian S-400 system has long been a sore point for both sides.

In response to that purchase, Washington in 2020 imposed sanctions on a major Turkish defense company and removed Turkey from the F-35 stealth fighter jet program, where Ankara was also a production partner.

“We’re going to be taking the sanctions off,” Trump told reporters just before his meeting with Erdogan during a visit to Turkey for a NATO summit. He added that his secretary of state and Treasury secretary were working on the issue.

Trump was also upbeat about the possible sale of F-35 stealth fighter jets to Turkey even as he did not say how exactly such a transaction would take place given the legal hurdles.

“Turkey has been, in many ways, much more loyal than other countries that we think would be loyal. ... It’s a great plane, it’s the best, currently the best plane by far. And it’s certainly something we will consider,” Trump said.

Congress passed a law prohibiting any F-35 sales to ​Turkey as long ⁠as Ankara retained the S-400s, saying the Russian system posed a security risk to U.S.-made combat aircraft. Currently, the U.S. law does not permit Turkey to operate or possess the S-400 system if it wishes to rejoin the F-35 program.

Earlier, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters that Trump was expected to throw his support behind a potential F-35 sale to Turkey. One solution that has in recent weeks gained traction is to send the Russian system to a third country, although an agreement on this has yet to be sealed, according to the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

It was unclear if such a move would be accepted by Russia, which requires end-user obligations in weapons sales.

Trump’s visit to Turkey is the first by a U.S. president in 11 years. He was welcomed by Erdogan with a lavish state ceremony and both leaders sang each other’s praises in their public remarks. Under Trump, Turkey’s deteriorating human rights track record has never been a topic of much concern for Washington.

美国总统唐纳德·特朗普周二宣布，华盛顿将解除因土耳其购买俄罗斯防御导弹而于2020年对土耳其实施的制裁，同时表示愿意向这个北约盟国出售F-35战斗机。

此举将是特朗普向土耳其总统埃尔多安（他视其为亲密盟友）发出的重大信号，并将消除双边关系中长期存在的一个主要摩擦点。

尽管在特朗普执政期间，华盛顿和安卡拉的关系更加密切，但土耳其在 2019 年购买俄罗斯 S-400 系统一直是双方的痛点。

作为对土耳其此次采购的回应，华盛顿在 2020 年对一家主要的土耳其国防公司实施了制裁，并将土耳其从 F-35 隐形战斗机项目中除名，而安卡拉也是该项目的生产合作伙伴。

“我们将取消制裁，”特朗普在访问土耳其参加北约峰会期间，与埃尔多安会晤前告诉记者。他还补充说，国务卿和财政部长正在处理此事。

尽管存在法律障碍，但特朗普并未说明此类交易将如何具体进行，不过他对可能向土耳其出售 F-35 隐形战斗机表示乐观。

“在很多方面，土耳其比我们认为会忠诚的其他国家要忠诚得多……这架飞机很棒，是目前为止最好的飞机。我们当然会考虑购买它，”特朗普说。

美国国会通过一项法律，禁止向土耳其出售任何F-35战机，只要安卡拉保留S-400防空系统，理由是俄罗斯的这套系统对美国制造的战斗机构成安全威胁。目前，美国法律不允许土耳其在希望重新加入F-35项目的情况下操作或拥有S-400系统。

此前，两名知情人士告诉路透社，特朗普预计将支持向土耳其出售F-35战机。近几周来，一种逐渐获得支持的方案是将这套俄罗斯战机出售给第三国，但据这两位要求匿名的消息人士称，相关协议尚未最终敲定。

目前尚不清楚俄罗斯是否会接受这一举措，因为俄罗斯要求武器销售必须包含最终用户义务。

特朗普此次访问土耳其是11年来美国总统首次访俄。埃尔多安以盛大的国事仪式欢迎他，两位领导人在公开讲话中互相赞扬。在特朗普执政期间，土耳其日益恶化的人权记录从未引起华盛顿的过多关注。