Turkey supports Russia and Hamas; The United States should not give them F-35 fighter jets

RecentdiscussionsRelations between Turkey and the United States indicate that the Biden administration is actively seeking to reintegrate Ankara into the F-35 program.

It is difficult to justify why Washington would want to arm Turkey with these highly advanced fighter jets, when Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is taking fervent steps to undermine the core security interests of the United States, NATO and our transatlantic allies.

Turkeys' eligibility to acquire F-35s was abruptlyfinished in 2019, in response to Ankara's insistence on acquiring the Russian-made S-400 air defense system.

Erdogan on several occasions ignored Washington warns that integrating the Russian system could compromise NATO systems and allow Russia to undermine and steal the F-35's stealth capabilities. Upon delivery of the S-400s, the Trump administrationdeleted Türkiye's F-35 program and imposed strict sanctions under the provisions of the Countering American Adversaries Through Sanctions Act.

Turkey now wants to reverse that fateful decision and has started a dialogue with Washington to find a way to get back into the F-35 program, and Washington is listening.

This is a serious mistake on Washington's part, on several fronts.

First, the turkeys proposed solution Addressing the S-400 problem is not a sufficient remedy to benefit from a strategic platform guaranteeing NATO a competitive advantage against its adversaries. At the end of August, Turkish officials reportedly made a speech to their American counterparts. plan to permanently store the Turkeys S-400, but have shownno willto completely close the system or transfer it to American supervision.

Even more worrying, Turkey does not really believe in the values ​​that define NATO; in fact, President Erdogan represents a clear threat to the objectives and security of the alliance and its members.

At the beginning of September 2024, President Erdogan announcement his decision to apply to join the Non-Aligned Movement BRICS+. HASNATO Summit in Washingtonin July he reiterated his wish for Turkey to become a member of the Union Shanghai Cooperation Organization (OCS). These two organizations are not only the antitheses of the Western economic and security institutions of which Turkey is a member, but they are also dedicated to undermining the rules-based order of the free world.

More recently, Erdogan gave ainterview on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, during which he boasted about Ankara's developing relations with Russia and suggested that Ankara opposed Ukraine's candidacy for membership. NATO.

It is not far-fetched to assume that Turkey plans to play a disruptive role in any attempt by Ukraine to join NATO, just as it did with Finland and Swedenbetween 2022 and 2023.

Ankara's hardened anti-Israel stance makes Washington's embrace of Turkey even more perplexing. On July 12, at the NATO summit in Washington, Turkey threatened to take steps to exclude Israel from all. cooperation with NATO. President Erdogan saidthat until a comprehensive and lasting peace is established in Palestine, attempts at cooperation with Israel within NATO will not be approved by Turkey.

The threats against Israel emanating from Ankara are not just rhetorical.

Erdogan's Islamist world viewdeeply anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli, sheds light on the actions of his country. Turkey is the only NATO country to champion the cause of Hamas, designated as a terrorist organization under the laws of the United States, the European Union and Canada.

Since October 7, 2023, Erdogan has intensified his diplomatic, logistical and perhaps even military support for Hamas.

On July 21, 2024, the Israeli internal security service, the Shin Bet, foileda Hamas terrorist attack orchestrated from Turkey. The Shin Bet captured five terrorists whoattestedto the military training, weapons and money they acquired in Türkiye. Israeli security hasintercepted several times weapons and explosive precursors from Turkey that smugglers were trying to bring into Gaza.

At a party conference in Rize, Turkey on July 28, 2024, Erdogan went so far as to threaten invade Israel just after a Hezbollah rocket supplied by Irankilled 12 children in the Israeli Druze town of Majdal Shams. Erdogan's inflammatory rhetoric, coupled with his material support for terrorists, suggests that Ankara may adopt an extremely dangerous escalatory posture in the developing conflict between Israel, Hezbollah and Iran.

Given this record, it is utterly absurd for the Biden administration to begin a dialogue with Ankara to explore ways to arm Turkey with the Western alliance's premier strategic weapons capability. This is irresponsible and dangerous. Washington alreadyallowed the sale of new F-16 fighter jets to Ankara in January 2024, to ensure that the Turkish Air Force can remain ready as a NATO ally. It is far too early to begin discussions on how Ankara could be equipped with F-35s, even if it removed the S-400s from its military inventory. Such a conversation can only begin once a relationship of trust is established with Turkey.

Turkey cannot join a security alliance with countries like Russia, Iran and China while being invited back into the F-35 program. Turkey must also make efforts to extricate itself from Russia's war economy. The US Treasury Department has already sanctioned Dozens of Turkish companies and individuals support Putin, and it must stop.

Turkey must once again chart a serious path to join the European Union. Turkey must join its allies in taking the toughest and most punitive measures to undermine Russia's illegal war efforts against Ukraine, starting with joining the sanctions regime against Moscow. It must demonstrate that it has not antagonized other NATO members, such as Greece, and EU countries such as Cyprus.

He must apologize for his many years of support for jihadist terrorist networks in the region, starting with Hamas, but also the Muslim Brotherhood and jihadist militias such as the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq. These entities, which have offices and staff in Türkiye, must be dissolved and their agents extradited to face justice for their crimes. Ankara must disclose and divest all ways in which it supports such entities.

Finally, any discussion of Turkey's acquisition of U.S. defense programs must begin with Ankara's compliance with the letter and spirit of the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). America's most advanced technology is intended to protect American national security and should only be shared with Washington's most committed allies and partners. Turkey does not meet this standard.

Sinan Seriousis a nonresident senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Follow him on X:@SinanCiddi.Sophie Epleyis an intern at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and a student at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University.