Three members of the US Congress familiar with the relevant processes have told Kathimerini that the key precondition for any change in US policy on selling F-35s to Turkey remains the fate of its Russian-made S-400 air defense systems.
The issue has returned forcefully to the forefront following reports that emerged after the recent NATO summit in Ankara, where US President Donald Trump left open the possibility of reviewing the framework of CAATSA sanctions against Turkey under certain conditions.
Jim Risch, a Republican senator from Idaho and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has been clear about the Senate’s position, emphasizing that the presence of the S-400s remains the main obstacle to the full restoration of defense cooperation between Washington and Ankara.
“Turkey’s possession of Russian S-400s has been a long-standing issue and a barrier to deepening our defense cooperation. I am hopeful that through President Trump’s leadership, Turkey will finally agree to end their possession of the S-400s and put this issue behind us,” he told Kathimerini.
Maryland Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen is taking a similar stance. In 2019, he was one of the main architects of the sanctions framework imposed by the US on Turkey, as well as one of the most ardent supporters of the implementation of the CAATSA law, which led to Ankara’s exclusion from the F-35 fifth-generation fighter jet program.
