Turkish television network NTV proceeded to fire its Washington correspondent, Hüseyin Günay, after the uproar caused in Turkey with his remarks about the meeting betweenTrumpand Erdogan at the White House. Günay had been covering White House reporting for the channel for many years. The issue took on new dimensions when an Associated Press camera accidentally recorded a private dialogue between two Turkish NTV correspondents outside the White House.
One of them, Günay, talks with a colleague from Anadolu, saying that Fidan “deliberately threw out the engine issue” because of the competition for the succession of Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The leak of the video, published by a pro-government media outlet, caused shock in Ankara. In the same conversation, obviously not knowing he was being recorded by the camera, he was asked “how did our talks go,” and he replied with the phrase that went viral: “We got screwed. We got nothing. Okay, we got something, but we got screwed.”
When asked about the F-35s, he said: “History. They talked. They talked about CAATSA, they talked about F-35s, but they set conditions. Conditions that if Palestinians are expelled from their places, Turkey should take them. Second, he told him to stop buying natural gas from Russia. Third, not to trade with China and not to transfer money to Palestine. We can’t do any of these things…” Günay then referred to Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s statement that the engines required for the domestically produced KAAN fighter aircraft would be imported from the US and that Congressional approval is expected, saying: “They’re betting on Fidan… The information about aircraft engines slipped out of him, but nobody knew it… There’s an internal conflict between Bilal (Erdogan), Hakan Fidan and the son-in-law (Selçuk Bayraktar).”
Hüseyin Günay videosunun 5 dakikalık uzun hali. o kadar haklı ki sözlerinde herkesin bildiğini o cenahtan birisinin ağzından duymak o kadar iyi ki. Özgür özelin bu mevzuyu dibine kadar kullanması lazım. pic.twitter.com/FbQLouAZfw
— emir (@gimaposeti) September 30, 2025
The full dialogue that “betrayed” the Turkish journalist
Journalist: How did the talks go?
Hüseyin Günay, NTV Washington correspondent: Fine… but we got nothing. We got screwed. We got nothing.
Journalist: No, they say we got something
Hüseyin Günay: “Yes we got something, but we got screwed. They talked about CAATSA, F-35s, but they set conditions. Like if Palestinians are expelled from their places, Turkey should take them. Also, he told him to stop buying natural gas from Russia and not to trade with China and not to transfer money to Palestine. We can’t do any of these things.”
Journalist: Well, with these conditions Erdogan will die (politically)!
Hüseyin Günay: Well, during this period they’re talking about the era after him.
Journalist: Is your camera on?
Hüseyin Günay: No… it opens… only if I press here… Inside (Ankara) they’re already putting particular pressure on Hakan Fidan. Now with his statement, the information about aircraft engines slipped out of him… nobody knew it. The man suddenly dropped a bomb. He did it deliberately. He’s playing with Albayrak. That is, he’s playing with the son-in-law. There’s a big fight in there between Fidan, the son-in-law and Bilal (Erdogan’s son). These three groups are killing each other.
In a statement through his X social media platform account, Hüseyin Günay, before his dismissal, mentioned: “My unfortunate position in current affairs today is different, but there was news I was eager to share with you. It happened to coincide with today, completely by chance. I want to share my happiness with you and I want you to share this joy too. I became a father, from now on you will call me Hüso Baba.”
CAATSA: The American law that brought sanctions to Turkey
The CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act), passed in 2017 by the US Congress, was established to limit the strategic relations of third countries with Russia, Iran and North Korea. In Turkey’s case, it became a turning point in relations with Washington when Ankara proceeded to purchase the Russian S-400 system.
This decision led the United States to impose sanctions in 2020 against Turkey’s Defense Industry Directorate (SSB) and its officials, while the country was simultaneously excluded from the F-35 fighter program.
The implementation of CAATSA against Turkey was considered critical by Washington to send a deterrent message to allies proceeding with defense cooperation with Moscow. For Ankara, however, it constituted a point of tension in relations with the US, which continues to affect the bilateral framework to this day.
Reactions in the Turkish press
Milliyet director Özay Şentürk tried to moderate impressions, noting that “the use of foreign engines in the first prototypes of military aircraft is international practice.” However, the revelation of the off-camera dialogue with hints about Erdogan’s succession fueled scenarios of a rift at the top of Turkish power.
The pro-government Milliyet commented that “hopefully Fidan had never brought the issue to current affairs,” while Defense Industry Directorate head Haluk Görgün rushed to assure that “KAAN’s future does not depend on engines from a single country.” Conversely, Cumhuriyet journalist Barış Terkoğlu argued that Fidan’s statement “was true, but considered a gaffe” and that the storm that broke out reflects intra-governmental power clashes.
Meanwhile, well-known TGRT commentator Cem Küçük claimed that Erdogan himself has received “incorrect information” about the program, believing that the first 45 fighters would already carry “domestic engines.” According to him, Ankara has closed a deal for 90 American F110 engines used in F-16s.
Hüseyin Günay ne yaptın, koltuk gitti . pic.twitter.com/JR57k2UcO8
— Ayhan Dadaloğlu (@AyhanDadaloglu) September 30, 2025
