Russian missiles or American fighters. Ankara must choose

Tom Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkey, said on Wednesday that Ankara must abandon the Russian S-400 air defense system in order to rejoin the F-35 fighter program, Daily Sabah reported.

“Under US law, Turkey cannot possess or operate the S-400 air defense system if it wants to rejoin the F-35 program,” the diplomat emphasized on X, referring to the Russian system, the acquisition of which led to Turkey's removal from the program in 2019.

The United States is in ongoing discussions with Türkiye regarding their desire to rejoin the F-35 program and their possession of the Russian-made S-400 air defense system. As laid out in US law, Turkiye must no longer operate nor possess the S-400 system to return to the F-35…

— Ambassador Tom Barrack (@USAMBTurkiye) December 9, 2025

Barrack noted the progress in the case and attributed the improved atmosphere to the relationship between the two leaders: Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Donald Trump. “The positive relationship between Presidents Trump and Erdogan has created a new climate of cooperation, enabling the most productive discussions we have had on this topic in the last 10 years.” – he said.

The ambassador suggested that the efforts could soon bear fruit. “We hope that ongoing negotiations will produce a milestone in the coming months that will meet the security needs of both the United States and Turkey,” he added.

The dispute over the S-400 system and Turkey's withdrawal from the F-35 consortium have long been a major point of tension between NATO allies..

Türkiye planned to purchase over 100 F-35 aircraft and cooperated with Lockheed Martin, producing fuselage and landing gear parts for these fighters. However, the contract with the Russians worth $2.5 billion ended the partnership, and the United States redirected Turkish orders to other buyers.

Washington fears that if Turkey received the F-35 and at the same time had Russian systems capable of collecting intelligence information, the advanced stealth technology used to make the fighters could fall into the hands of the Kremlin.

Jakub Bawołek (PAP)

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