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Trump Promises Turkey F-35s and CAATSA Sanctions Relief — But Congress Stands in the Way

Donald Trump‘s visit to Turkey for the NATO Summit unfolded in an exceptionally warm atmosphere, marked by striking declarations and commitments regarding Ankara’s potential return to the F-35 fighter jet program. Speaking at the Presidential…

Trump Promises Turkey F-35s and CAATSA Sanctions Relief — But Congress Stands in the Way
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Donald Trump‘s visit to Turkey for the NATO Summit unfolded in an exceptionally warm atmosphere, marked by striking declarations and commitments regarding Ankara’s potential return to the F-35 fighter jet program. Speaking at the Presidential Palace on Tuesday (07/07), the U.S. president opened the door to selling F-35s to Turkey while also expressing his intention to lift sanctions against Ankara — all in a display of remarkably close personal friendship with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The key question, however, remains: will these promises translate into action? What is certain is that relations between the two leaders are better than ever, as vividly demonstrated by the warm welcome Erdoğan extended to his American counterpart.

Trump on lifting sanctions against Turkey and returning to the F-35 program

The U.S. president arrived in the Turkish capital aboard the interim presidential aircraft — a gift from Qatar — where a cordial reception awaited him from Erdoğan and his wife Emine. The Turkish leader immediately linked arms with Trump, even as both men appeared to walk with some difficulty. “Merhaba asker!” (“Hello, soldier!”) the American president called out to the honor guard that greeted him at Ankara’s airport.

Speaking at the Presidential Palace, Trump laid out his position on the F-35s and Turkey’s potential return to the program. “This is a decision we’re going to make. We have very good relations. Everyone says: ‘Why wouldn’t we do this?’ Turkey is more loyal than most countries. It’s something we’re looking at. The F-35 is the best aircraft in the world, and we will take it into consideration,” he said at the opening of his meeting with President Erdoğan.

When asked by reporters about the measures imposed under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), Trump was equally direct: “We’re going to remove the sanctions, okay? I don’t want to waste time answering that. We’re going to lift those sanctions. The time has come. We don’t want to sanction our friends. I don’t want to strangle my friend with sanctions.“

As a reminder, in 2020 Washington imposed CAATSA sanctions on Turkey following Ankara’s acquisition of the Russian S-300 air defense system. Turkey was also removed from the F-35 manufacturing program — a move Ankara has consistently described as unjust and unlawful.

Democratic lawmakers launch new congressional push to block F-35 sale to Turkey

Time will tell whether the U.S. president’s stated intention to unlock F-35s for Turkey will become reality. The U.S. Congress continues to harbor serious reservations about Turkey, and CAATSA sanctions cannot be lifted by a White House executive decision alone — congressional approval is required.

Democratic lawmakers have called on House Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries to be prepared to use every legislative tool at their disposal to prevent the Trump administration from moving forward with Turkey’s reinstatement into the F-35 program.

The letter was written by Representative Dina Titus and is backed by 17 of her colleagues, all Democrats. Notably, not a single Republican signed the letter — including Greek-American members of Congress.

Turkey’s goals at the NATO Summit

Turkey arrived at the NATO Summit with an ambitious agenda, seeking to capitalize on the moment for a full normalization of its relationship with the United States. Ankara’s primary objective was reinstatement into the F-35 program, with Trump expressing a positive disposition toward lifting CAATSA sanctions. However, Congress retains a decisive role in any final decision, making the actual implementation of these promises uncertain.

Erdoğan, for his part, confirmed: “The F-35 is not a new issue for us. We have discussed it with the U.S. in the past and were given a promise for five fighter aircraft. Mr. Trump also gave us his word, and I know he always keeps his word on this matter.“

Ankara is also seeking to secure the purchase of the Franco-Italian SAMP/T missile defense system. If that deal is completed, the need to retain the Russian S-400s would likely disappear, thereby clearing the path for Turkey’s return to the F-35 program. Additionally, Turkey is aiming for institutional participation in the European Defence initiative and the SAFE program, seeking to forge a special relationship with the European Union as a security provider.

Turkey was also eager to confirm France’s stated willingness to greenlight the sale of the Franco-Italian SAMP/T missile system. Should that sale be confirmed, the rationale for maintaining the S-400s would in all likelihood evaporate — immediately opening the door to rejoining the F-35 program.

The lavish praise Trump heaped on Erdoğan

Elsewhere in his remarks at the Turkish Presidential Palace, Trump moved from topic to topic and declared: “As has been widely reported in the press, we are very close friends. It’s wonderful to be welcomed by a building bearing my name the moment I land at the airport. The airport is beautiful, all the roads are brand new. We’ve had a good relationship from the very beginning. It’s a very special relationship between us. Turkey has a very strong leader. He has strong military forces. It’s a very powerful country. Thanks to this relationship, everything is going well. I have great respect for the President. We’ll probably also discuss Iran. We have largely destroyed their military. They will not obtain nuclear weapons. It’s a great honor for me to be here among you. We had a very good meeting. We enjoyed a nice dinner and worked very hard.“

The American leader made no secret of it: he was in Ankara solely because they are “great friends.” He even waxed philosophical: “You never know why a relationship is special — some people need to be in your life and others don’t. Either you work with very tough guys or you can’t get along with weak people. We had that incident with the pastor, who was sentenced to a long prison term. I called the President and he released him immediately. The Christian community will never forget that. That’s when I realized how good the chemistry was between us. There are also those with whom I don’t have good chemistry, and we get along with them somehow.“

Trump on Meloni: “She’s a good person, really”

Also drawing attention, Trump appeared to put to rest the recent tensions between himself and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, speaking warmly about her. “She’s a good person, really,” he told a reporter. He added that “I like her a lot, but I think she made a mistake — she just wasn’t there for us, and I didn’t like that,” referring to Meloni’s refusal to support the American-Israeli strike against Iran.

The NATO Summit agenda in Ankara

High on the Summit’s agenda was the implementation of the commitment to reach total defense spending of 5% of GDP by 2035 — of which 3.5% is dedicated to core military expenditure and the remainder to defense-enhancing investments and resilience. (Greece, Poland, the Scandinavian nations, and the Baltic states are already meeting the target.)

The discussion on defense spending is directly linked to the broader transformation of the Alliance and the gradual transfer of greater responsibility for Europe’s conventional defense to European Allies and Canada — without calling into question the American commitment to Article 5.

The continuation of military support for Ukraine also featured as a central item on the Summit’s agenda, alongside a strong emphasis on reinforcing the Alliance’s defense industrial base.

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