Trump backs Turkey on F-35 debate

Washington: US President Donald Trump on Monday strongly defended Turkey as a key American ally and signalled that he would not allow objections from Israel or other countries to dictate US decisions on arms sales, including the possible sale of F-35 fighter jets to Ankara.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One en route to Michigan, Trump was asked whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opposed the sale of F-35 stealth fighters to Turkey and whether the issue would feature in their meeting on Tuesday.

Trump responded by praising Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and reaffirming Washington’s ties with Ankara.

“Turkey’s been a great ally for me,” Trump said. “I think he’s done a very good job. Did a good job with Syria. He’s a friend of mine.”

The President made clear that decisions on US arms sales would be made in Washington.

“Nobody tells me what we should be selling or not,” Trump said.

Trump acknowledged that relations between Turkey and Israel remain strained.

“Turkey’s not a big fan of Israel. You know that, right? And not a big fan of Bibi,” he said, referring to Netanyahu by his nickname.

“But they’ve been great for me. Turkey has been great.”

He also highlighted Turkey’s military strength.

“Very powerful country, by the way. Tremendous military. Very big military. Very powerful military. Has a lot of great equipment,” Trump said.

The comments came ahead of Trump’s scheduled meeting with Netanyahu, where the two leaders are expected to discuss Iran and broader Middle East security.

Asked whether he and the Israeli Prime Minister were aligned on Iran, Trump said they remained largely in agreement despite some differences.

“We have a little difference, but pretty close,” he said.

The President repeated his claim that recent US military operations had significantly weakened Iran and pushed Tehran towards negotiations.

“Iran took a beating over the last 14 days. They asked us very nicely, ‘Please stop. Let’s meet.’ That’s what we are right now. See what happens. If we don’t make a deal, we go back to the same thing.”

Trump later praised Netanyahu’s leadership during the conflict while declining to say whether the Israeli leader preferred continued military action or a diplomatic agreement with Tehran.

“Bibi has been great,” Trump said. “He was a wartime prime minister. We did very well together.”

“And if you look at Iran now, they’re 8 per cent of what they were four months ago. They’re 8 per cent of what they were four months ago. So we’ll see how this all comes out.”

Trump’s remarks underscored his effort to maintain close ties with both Israel and Turkey despite growing differences between the two countries over regional conflicts and security issues. His comments also suggested that his administration intends to make defence export decisions based on US strategic interests rather than the preferences of regional partners.

–IANS