Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the country's exclusion from the US fifth-generation F-35 fighter jet program unfair. He believes that returning to the program is important for NATO.
"Turkey's return to the F-35 program is important for NATO. Turkey should join this program again. NATO security is impossible without Turkey. Turkey's exclusion from the program due to the purchase of military equipment from Russia is unfair," Erdogan said, referring to the purchase of S-400 air defense systems from Russia. TRT Haber TV channel quoted the Turkish President's words.
In 2017, Turkey purchased four divisions of S-400 air defense systems from Russia for $2.5 billion. In October 2019, Rosoboronexport (part of Rostech State Corporation) announced that the system supply contract had been fulfilled.
After the conclusion of the contract for the supply of the S-400 missile complex between Turkey and Russia, Ankara was removed from the US F-35 fighter jet development program.
