F-35 jets, Russia’s S-400… Why is Trump lenient on India’s enemy Turkey? Put one condition for Erdogan, it is…

Trump has changed US geopolitics into a high-stakes game of football, randomly inviting and isolating countries based on his own strategic interests and instincts. A vivid illustration of this is his change of position on Turkey’s exclusion from the program for the F-35 stealth fighter jet, even though Turkey continues to possess the Russian S-400 air defense system.

What condition has Trump set for Erdogan regarding the F-35 jets?

According to an AP report, President Doland Trump held talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the White House on Thursday, suggesting that the US may soon lift restrictions on selling advanced fighter jets to Turkey.

Why was Turkey removed from the F-35 program earlier?

It is to be noted that during Trump’s first presidency, the United States expelled Turkey, a NATO ally, from its F-35 fighter jet program after Turkey made a deal with Russia for an air defense system. US officials feared that Turkey’s use of the S-400 could compromise the F-35’s sensitive technology, potentially allowing critical data to fall into Russian hands.

According to media reports, Trump has only put forth one condition to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for lifting a ban on F-35 sales to the NATO ally. Erdogan came to the White House on Thursday, his first visit since 2019, when the U.S. had just expelled Turkey from the F-35 program for buying the Russian S-400 air defense system.

Meanwhile, while meeting in the White House with the Turkish President, Doland Trump stated that he is ready to have serious talks about the F-35 stealth fighter jet issue with Turkey. Trump further stated, “He needs certain things, and we need certain things, and we’re going to come to a conclusion. You’ll know by the end of the day.” According to the AP report, the president added to Erdogan, “And I think you’ll be successful with buying the things” you would “like to buy.”

Trump indicated that, if the meetings at the White House go well on Thursday, he could “almost immediately” lift the sanctions, which were imposed following Turkey’s purchase of Russian missiles in 2019.

The president called it a “good meeting” in a short conversation with reporters as he bid farewell to Erdogan, but gave no details. Trump then said the meeting was “very conclusive on so many different things” and said that official announcements from both countries regarding the outcomes of the talks would be released subsequently.

Where does Turkey stand in the Russia-Ukraine conflict?

Turkey and Russia have a historically close relationship. Following the Ukraine conflict and the strict sanctions imposed on Russia by NATO countries, Turkey has explicitly not participated in the restrictions and remains free to import crude oil from Russia.

Following their meeting, the US President stated that he believed that Erdogan would discontinue purchasing oil from Russia – not that Turkey’s leader had explicitly agreed to do so during their conversation. “I don’t want to say that” Erdogan agreed to stop the purchases, “but if I want him to, he will,” Trump said, reported AP.

The Bruegel Institute of Europe estimates that Turkey is the fourth-largest trading partner of Russia. Last year, the estimated trade between the two countries reached $52 billion. The trade includes crude oil, gas, and electronics. In contrast, Turkey was removed from the F-35 program in 2019 after it bought the S-400 air defense system from Russia. At that time, the U.S. was concerned that using the F-35 together with the S-400 would risk exposing Russia to the latest technologies in the fighter jet. The question now is, if the U.S. sells F-35s to Turkey while Turkey has the S-400, will the technology of the F-35 be secured? Erdogan has indicated that he would like to rejoin the F-35 program.