According to Kordpress, the case of Türkiye's return to the F-35 stealth fighters project has been raised once again in the relations between Ankara and Washington. This issue became more serious after JD Vance, the vice president of the United States, announced in an interview with the Reuters news agency that the Trump administration is considering a way to enable the sale of F-35 fighters to Turkey. In this conversation, Vance emphasized that this review is being done by the order of the US President and added that any decision in this regard must be consistent with US laws, especially the restrictions related to the purchase of the S-400 system by Turkey.

These statements were interpreted in the media and political atmosphere of Türkiye as a sign of reopening the F-35 case; However, the prevailing assessment is that Washington has not yet made a final decision and is merely exploring possible legal and political paths. Therefore, although the re-promotion of this issue can be a sign of the desire of the two sides to revive defense talks, until the dispute over the S-400 system and the restrictions of the US Congress are not resolved, it cannot be considered as Türkiye's definitive return to the F-35 program.

In 2019, after purchasing the Russian S-400 air defense system, Türkiye was excluded from the F-35 fighter jet production and purchase program. At that time, Washington announced that the simultaneous presence of the S-400 system and the F-35 fighter could jeopardize the security of the aircraft's sensitive technologies.

Despite the Trump administration's more positive tone, no final decision has yet been made on Türkiye's return to the F-35 program. According to the Reuters report, US laws still restrict the sale of these fighters to Türkiye until the S-400 issue is resolved, and Congress has a decisive role in this regard.

At the same time, the issue of the Trump administration's notification to Congress about the sale of fighter engines for the national "Kaan" project was also reflected in the Turkish media. Citing the Reuters report, Khabartrak media mentioned this action as an important step in the defense cooperation between Washington and Ankara and wrote that these engines are supposed to propel the indigenous "Kaan" fighter. However, it is emphasized in this report that this decision does not mean the resolution of the disputes over the F-35 program and the S-400 system case is still the most important obstacle in the path of the full normalization of defense cooperation between the two countries.

What is being heard from Washington these days, at least at this point, seems to be an attempt to manage relations with Ankara rather than a fundamental change in American policy. This issue was raised for the first time in the report of the Reuters news agency; Where J.D. Vance, the vice president of the United States, announced the investigation of ways to enable the sale of F-35 fighters to Türkiye. However, the tone of this report also shows that it is not yet a final decision. What can be seen at the moment is the sending of messages that, on the one hand, can be a sign of readiness for dialogue and, on the other hand, can still maintain Washington's pressure on Ankara. From this point of view, the re-introduction of the F-35 case can be seen more as an attempt to keep the negotiation path open rather than announcing a final decision.

On the other hand, the most important obstacle is still the same issue that has not changed since 2019; Russian S-400 air defense system. From the perspective of US security agencies and lawmakers, the case is not just a political dispute, but directly related to technical and security concerns about protecting the F-35's sensitive technologies. For this reason, even if the White House takes a more flexible approach, until the S-400 issue is resolved, it will still be difficult to clear legal hurdles and get congressional approval for Turkey's return to the F-35 project.

On the other hand, the way of redefining Türkiye's geopolitical position in the eyes of Washington is also not without influence in this equation. The German Marshall Fund think tank has written in an analysis about the new US national security strategy that in this document, the name of Turkey is mentioned only once and the same reference was made in the context of the Middle East; An issue that indicates Washington's relative distance from the traditional view of Türkiye as a purely European-NATO partner. At the same time, the Brookings Institution has emphasized in its analysis that Turkey's traditional position in the transatlantic order is no longer as clear and stable as it was in the past, and Washington is still oscillating between looking at Turkey as a NATO ally, a regional actor, and a security partner in the Middle East. In such a framework, Turkey's complete return to an advanced and sensitive project like the F-35, which is at the heart of NATO's security architecture, is tied not only to the resolution of the S-400 case, but also to the redefinition of Türkiye's position in the American macro-strategy.

What is seen today is more than a sign of a strategic turn in American policy, it is an attempt to keep the dialogue path open with Ankara. The F-35 file is likely to be put back on the table, but it is not clear if it will come to fruition. As long as the S-400 issue and the resulting legal restrictions remain, the possibility of Turkey's return to this project is still tied to the political decisions of the two countries and the trend of bilateral relations, as well as the turbulent situation in the Middle East (and its suburbs).