Turkey Continues Talks with US Regarding F-35 Procurement

Ankara (ANTARA) - Turkey is continuing to engage with the United States regarding the procurement of F-35 fighter jets and hopes for a positive outcome from these negotiations, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday.

“Our demands regarding the F-35 are very clear. Our colleagues continue to hold discussions with their counterparts from the US. We expect a positive result,” Erdogan told reporters aboard his plane while returning from Kazakhstan.

He also highlighted progress in the national fifth-generation fighter jet project, KAAN. The project is developing rapidly, and upon completion, a “new chapter” will begin for Turkey in the defence industry.

The Turkish President said that KAAN is only the first step, and Turkey intends to create even more modern and powerful weapons systems.

Products from Turkey’s defence sector are increasingly attracting global attention, Erdogan said, referring to the SAHA Expo 2026 exhibition in Istanbul, where more than 200 new developments were presented and the value of agreements reached totalled $8 billion (approximately IDR 140.8 trillion).

The exhibition was attended by more than 150,000 people, demonstrating the level of development of Turkey’s defence industry and strengthening Ankara’s ambitions in this field, Erdogan added.

Source: Sputnik/RIA Novosti