US committee to bar Turkey from buying F-35 jets

<p style="text-align: left;">A United States Senate committee passed its version of a $716 billion defense policy bill on May 24, including a measure to prevent Turkey from purchasing Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets.

The amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, from Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen and Republican Senator Thom Tillis, would remove Turkey from the F-35 program over its detention of U.S. citizen Andrew Brunson, Shaheen&rsquo;s office said.

It also faults NATO ally Turkey for its agreement with Russia in December 2017 to buy S-400 surface-to-air missile batteries. Ankara wants the system to boost its defense capabilities amid conflicts across its borders in Syria and Iraq.

According to Shaheen&rsquo;s office, the intention to purchase the Russian system is sanctionable under U.S. law, Hurriyet daily reported.

&ldquo;There is tremendous hesitancy [about] transferring sensitive F-35 planes and technology to a nation who has purchased a Russian air defense system designed to shoot these very planes down,&rdquo; said Senator Shaheen.

Relations between Ankara and Washington have been strained over a host of issues in recent months, including U.S. policy in Syria and a number of legal cases against Turkish and U.S. nationals being held in the two countries.

Turkey has said it would retaliate if the U.S. enacted a law halting weapons sales to the country.

Reporter&rsquo;s code: 50101

News Code 4609

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