Türkiye is still interested in purchasing Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets from Germany, Britain and Spain, but there has been no concrete progress yet, its defense minister said on Monday, expressing hope for a positive response from its allies.
The interest in the twin-engine, supersonic Eurofighter jets emerged after a prolonged process over Türkiye's acquisition of F-16 warplanes from the U.S.
The warplanes are built by a German, British, Italian and Spanish consortium, represented by Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo.
In November, Türkiye announced it was in talks with Britain and Spain to buy as many as 40 Eurofighters, but Germany objected.
It has criticized Berlin over its stance, with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan last month urging German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to lift the block that has frustrated Ankara.
Two weeks ago, Giancarlo Mezzanatto, CEO of Eurofighter, confirmed Türkiye's interest in acquiring the fighter jets but revealed that Germany had obstructed the sale.
Defense Minister Yaşar Güler said on Monday he hoped for a positive response from the allies as he noted that Türkiye remains interested in the warplanes.
Mezzanatto suggested that Germany’s blockage could be linked to Türkiye's natural gas exploration activities in the Eastern Mediterranean.
The sea has long been a major cause of tensions between Türkiye and Greece, in addition to the Cyprus dispute and territorial sovereignty in the Aegean. However, in recent months, the sides have taken confidence-building steps toward a fragile normalization.
Türkiye was sanctioned by the U.S. and removed from the multinational F-35 fighter jet program in 2019 due to its acquisition of Russian-made S-400 air defense missile systems.
Since then, it has been working to procure 40 Block-70 F-16 fighter jets and 79 modernization kits from Washington. The deal was approved earlier this year after Türkiye's blessing of Sweden's NATO bid.
Türkiye is pleased with its deal with the United States regarding the procurement and the process is continuing as planned, Güler told an interview with Reuters.
Since it was approved, Türkiye is said to have been looking to scale back what is estimated to be a $23 billion contract. It is seeking to produce some warplane parts locally and buy fewer upgrade kits and munitions to save billions of dollars amid spending cuts at home, Bloomberg News reported earlier last month.
Güler added that officials from the two NATO allies are still discussing details of the agreement and said the acquisition of the jets was continuing in line with the set calendar.
"We are pleased with the accord reached on the procurement of the F-16s and modernization, and we hope the project will be completed without a problem until the last jet is delivered," he said.
Asked whether Türkiye wanted to return to the F-35 program, Güler said talks between Ankara and Washington continued on the matter.
Türkiye had sought to purchase as many as 100 F-35 jets and its companies were building some 900 fighter jet parts.
Ankara has repeatedly said the purchase of two battalions of the surface-to-air missile system followed the U.S.' refusal to supply Patriots.
Washington argued that the S-400s posed a risk to the advanced fighter jet, whereas Ankara insisted they would not be integrated into NATO systems.
Ankara has repeatedly demanded reimbursement for its payment for the F-35s before requesting to buy F-16 warplanes and modernization kits to refresh its existing fleet.
Türkiye seeks to replace the aging F-16 fleet in the Air Forces Command's inventory, which will be phased out starting in the 2030s.
Among others, Güler said recent joint steps taken by Türkiye and Iraq in terms of counter-terrorism marked a "turning point" in ties, adding technical work on establishing a joint operations center for military activities was continuing.
He added that the Iraqi part of a planned Development Road Project trade corridor with Iraq, Türkiye, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was under threat from the PKK terrorist group and needed securing.