Trump: We are considering selling F-35

TT

Published 16.00

President Donald Trump shakes hands with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of their meeting on Tuesday. Photo: Alex Brandon/AP/TT

After arriving at the NATO summit in Ankara, President Donald Trump again hinted that the United States may be on the verge of selling the F-35 fighter jet to Turkey.

– It’s a great plane, by far the best, and it’s definitely something we will consider, Trump said, sitting next to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of a meeting between the leaders.

Turkey was excluded from the F-35 program in 2019 after the country bought Russian air defense systems. Erdogan has since tried to get the United States to lift the sanctions, which is ultimately up to the US Congress.

– We will lift the sanctions, Trump answered a question.

– We do not want to impose sanctions on friends.

Erdogan says through a translator that Trump “personally promised” to resolve the dispute and that the American president “always keeps his word.”