Lawmakers Oppose Possible Fighter Jet Sale to Turkey
A bipartisan group of 20 House members told the Trump administration Sept. 25 that they would oppose the potential U.S. export of F-16 and F-35 fighter jets to Turkey for security reasons.
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In a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the lawmakers said the presence of Russian S-400 surface-to-air missile systems in Turkey would allow Russia to collect sensitive information on the American aircraft. They noted that the first Trump administration removed Turkey from the F-35 program in 2019 due to such concerns.
The letter also points out that Section 1245 of the FY 2020 National Defense Authorization Act prohibits the sale of F-35s to Turkey if the country possesses the S-400.
The letter was led by Reps. Chris Pappas, D-N.H.; Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla.; Dina Titus, D-Nev.; and Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y. The State and Defense departments had no immediate comment on the letter.