While the Biden administration asserts that there is no connection between Sweden's approval and Turkey's F-16 sales, key figures in the US Congress have indicated otherwise. Mitch McConnell, the leader of Republicans in the Senate, has stated that he opposes F-16 sales to Turkey until Sweden's membership is confirmed, according to a report by the Voice of America Turkish.

Supporting the views of Bob Menendez, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, on the sale of F-16s to Turkey, the Republican Senator said, "I am one of those who are not in favor of selling F-16s to Turkey until Sweden's membership becomes a reality."

Apart from Turkey, Hungary has also not yet given its approval for Sweden's NATO membership; however, Budapest has sent a message that it will not prolong the process after receiving a positive step from Ankara.

Senator Jim Risch, the senior Republican member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, blocked new arms sales to Hungary last month on the grounds that Sweden has not yet approved NATO membership.

Mitch McConnell also supported Jim Risch's move, stating, "Risch has appropriately exercised Congress's authority over arms sales. If Turkey and Hungary do the right thing in Vilnius, everything can be resolved."

Jim Townsend, the former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for European and NATO Policy at the US Department of Defense, evaluated the current situation before the summit in an interview with VOA Turkish. He said that if the process is prolonged until autumn, there will be disappointment on both the Democratic and Republican sides of Congress, and in this case, it will become more difficult to provide new F-16s, spare parts, and upgrades to Turkey.

Townsend, an expert on Transatlantic Security in the Transatlantic Security Program at the Center for a New American Security in Washington, stated, "There may be movement in Congress as progress is made in the discussions on Sweden. Approval of Sweden's membership does not necessarily have to come immediately at the summit in Vilnius. Turkey can proceed after reaching an agreement with Hungary on Sweden. However, an affirmative response from Turkey is needed."

Townsend, who expressed hope for such an outcome in closed-door discussions, said, "In such negotiations, parties usually wait until the last minute before reaching an agreement. There are still a few days left until the summit."

Bob Menendez, the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is one of the critical figures who have the power to prevent arms sales to foreign countries in the US Congress.

There has been no response yet from Menendez's office to VOA Turkish's requests for comments on the issue.

A delegation of six senators led by Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen and Republican Senator Thom Tillis, who are co-chairs of the Senate NATO Observer Group, will also be present at the NATO summit in Vilnius.

While the President has the authority to bypass Congress's objection by invoking national security concerns in arms sales, the Biden administration has expressed its commitment to working with Congress through the regular approval process on this matter.