{"id":924,"date":"2026-07-07T20:17:58","date_gmt":"2026-07-07T20:17:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=924"},"modified":"2026-07-07T20:17:58","modified_gmt":"2026-07-07T20:17:58","slug":"trumps-biggest-roadblock-to-selling-jets-to-turkey-may-be-republican-lawmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=924","title":{"rendered":"Trump\u2019s Biggest Roadblock to Selling Jets to Turkey May Be Republican Lawmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Congress is already pushing back on President Donald Trump\u2019s plans<\/u><\/span> to lift sanctions on Turkey and potentially sell the country F-35 fighter jets.<\/p>\n

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Lawmakers from both parties warned Tuesday that Turkey\u2019s possession of the S-400 Russian air defense system still poses the security concerns that prompted Congress to restrict F-35 transfers so long as Turkey possesses the system.<\/p>\n

The opposition is also being fueled by past clashes between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan\u2019s government and countries that have diaspora communities in the U.S. \u2014 and allies on Capitol Hill \u2014 including Israel, Greece, Cyprus and Armenia.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf used in proximity to the F-35,\u201d Turkey\u2019s S-400 \u201ccould reveal to Russia how our stealth technology works,\u201d Rep. Brad Sherman (D-California) said in a statement to NOTUS. Lifting the sanctions \u201cwould be tantamount to handing [Russian President Vladimir] Putin the blueprints to our technology.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rep. Mike Lawler of New York, a member of the House Republican Israel Caucus, said the F-35 transfer ban must remain in force so long as Ankara retains the S-400.<\/p>\n

\u201cSelling one of America\u2019s most advanced fighter jets to Turkey is not in the best interest of the United States,\u201d Lawler said in a statement to NOTUS. \u201cIt risks compromising critical technology and sends the wrong message to our allies in Europe and the Middle East.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lawler had already released a bipartisan letter last week<\/u><\/span> with five other Republicans opposing Turkey\u2019s return to the program.<\/p>\n

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-New York) likewise urged the administration to abandon any potential sale, citing Erdogan\u2019s ties to Russia and Iran, support for Hamas, disputes with neighbors and treatment of political opponents and journalists.<\/p>\n

\u201cProviding Turkey with our most advanced fighter jet would jeopardize U.S. national security, risk sensitive technology falling into the wrong hands, and endanger our allies in the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East,\u201d she said in a statement to NOTUS.<\/p>\n

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) publicly highlighted the legal limits on a transfer and posted on social media<\/u><\/span> in response to initial reports: \u201cI hope this is wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even Republicans open to the sale acknowledged the political obstacles created by Turkey\u2019s regional conflicts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere may be some pushback in Congress, to be honest with you,\u201d Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina), a Trump ally, told reporters in Ankara on Tuesday. \u201cTurkey\u2019s relationship with Israel is probably not really helpful in Congress.\u201d<\/p>\n

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the case himself on CNN after Trump\u2019s remarks, warning that selling the F-35 to Turkey would upset the balance of power in the Middle East. He accused Erdogan\u2019s government of supporting Hamas, threatening Greece and Cyprus and directing increasingly hostile rhetoric toward Israel.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not a force for peace and stability,\u201d Netanyahu said. \u201cWhen you give him that power, you\u2019re going to see aggression in its wake.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Legal Defense Group Sues Administration for Sharing Asylum Records With Iran<\/a><\/p>\n

The United States removed Turkey from the F-35 program in 2019 after Ankara purchased the S-400, arguing that operating the Russian system could expose sensitive information about the stealthy American aircraft. The following year, the Trump administration imposed sanctions under the Countering America\u2019s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, or CAATSA, against Turkey\u2019s main defense procurement agency because of the same transaction.<\/p>\n

Congress also restricted transfers of F-35s to Turkey. The law allows the ban to be waived if the secretaries of defense and state jointly certify to Congress that Turkey no longer possesses the S-400, has given credible assurances that it will not acquire the system again, and has not since 2019 bought other Russian defense equipment that could compromise the F-35. The administration must then wait 90 days before the waiver can take effect.<\/p>\n

Trump, sitting alongside Erdogan at the NATO Summit in Ankara on Tuesday, did not mention those concerns. Asked whether he would sell F-35s to Turkey, Trump said he saw little reason not to consider it \u2014 tossing in a dig at other NATO allies.<\/p>\n

\u201cTurkey has been in many ways much more loyal than other countries that we think would be loyal,\u201d Trump said. \u201cSo it\u2019s something we certainly would consider.\u201d<\/p>\n

When pressed about Turkey\u2019s possession of the S-400 system, Trump was dismissive.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have no concerns about anything having to do with Turkey\u2019s relationship,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Sanctions would be waived, he said. \u201cWe don\u2019t want to sanction friends,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

A new letter<\/u><\/span> to chamber leadership from 18 House Democrats called for a resolution of disapproval under CAATSA if the administration moves to waive or circumvent sanctions without a legal basis to readmit Turkey to the F-35 program.<\/p>\n

The letter, led by Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nevada), a member of the Hellenic Caucus and the Hellenic-Israel Alliance Caucus \u2014 cited Turkey\u2019s \u201caggressive posture toward Greece and Cyprus\u201d and its \u201cmaterial support to Azerbaijan in its military campaigns against Armenia.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cRewarding this pattern of behavior with one of the most advanced weapons platforms in the American arsenal risks emboldening further destabilizing conduct and undermining the confidence of allies who have played by the rules,\u201d it says.<\/p>\n

Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the House Foreign Affairs Committee\u2019s top Democrat, said in a statement to NOTUS, \u201cThe law is clear: Turkey cannot receive the F-35, and CAATSA sanctions should not be lifted while it continues to possess Russia\u2019s S-400 air defense system.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ahead of the summit, Meeks\u2019 Republican counterpart on the panel also expressed resistance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a matter of law,\u201d Rep. Brian Mast (R-Florida), the House Foreign Affairs chair and a Trump ally, told NOTUS<\/u><\/span>. \u201cTurkey is problematic on a number of fronts. Their actions in Syria and other places are much bigger pieces of the conversation that need to be addressed.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Trump Says He\u2019s Removing Sanctions and Weighing F-35 Sales for Turkey<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cSelling one of America’s most advanced fighter jets to Turkey is not in the best interest of the United States,\u201d said one House Republican.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":923,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-924","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-congress"],"yoast_head":"\nTrump\u2019s Biggest Roadblock to Selling Jets to Turkey May Be Republican Lawmakers - Modern Home Journals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=924\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trump\u2019s Biggest Roadblock to Selling Jets to Turkey May Be Republican Lawmakers - Modern Home Journals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u201cSelling one of America's most advanced fighter jets to Turkey is not in the best interest of the United States,\u201d said one House Republican.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=924\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Modern Home Journals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-07T20:17:58+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/533de239efc09a2ab59959cc1bff86d0\"},\"headline\":\"Trump\u2019s Biggest Roadblock to Selling Jets to Turkey May Be Republican Lawmakers\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-07T20:17:58+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924\"},\"wordCount\":994,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/7382478cc5cb6994a4f435754b28f0b0-scaled.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Congress\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924\",\"name\":\"Trump\u2019s Biggest Roadblock to Selling Jets to Turkey May Be Republican Lawmakers - Modern Home Journals\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/7382478cc5cb6994a4f435754b28f0b0-scaled.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-07T20:17:58+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/533de239efc09a2ab59959cc1bff86d0\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/?p=924#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/7382478cc5cb6994a4f435754b28f0b0-scaled.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/modernhomejournals.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/7382478cc5cb6994a4f435754b28f0b0-scaled.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707,\"caption\":\"President Donald Trump, right, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a formal welcome at the Bestepe Presidential Palace during the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, Tuesday, July 7, 2026. 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