Stratfor/ Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan linked the National Assembly’s pending ratification of Sweden’s NATO bid to U.S. approval of an F-16 fighter jet sale to Turkey, Al-Monitor reported on Dec. 6. The linkage of the two votes is a reversal of Erdogan’s previous stance.
Despite statements by Swedish and Turkish foreign ministers that Turkey’s National Assembly would ratify the bid within weeks, Erdogan’s recent statements show that Turkey may be willing to continue to delay the ratification process to pressure the United States into moving forward with the arms sale. Sweden and other NATO allies may also pressure the United States to move forward with the F-16 sale to finalize Turkish ratification.
Erdogan issued these statements ahead of his meeting with Greece to advance a “positive agenda,” as the the U.S. Congress is concerned that Turkey may use the F-16s against Greece and Kurds. These concerns have delayed the approval of the sale despite support from U.S. President Joe Biden.
