U.S. F-35

Turkey's first choice is to be in the U.S. F-35 fighter jet program, and its exclusion from the program due to CAATSA sanctions is an unfair and unlawful practice, the country's presidential spokesperson said on Nov. 4.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has discussed by telephone with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo the Russian S-400 missile defence system and the U.S. F-35 fighter jet program, a foreign ministry source said on Saturday.
The source did not say when the conversation took place.

President Tayyip Erdogan said today that it is out of the question for Turkey to take a step back from its deal with Moscow to buy Russian S-400 missile defense systems.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said he sees an improvement in talks with the United States over the purchase of Russian S-400 defense systems and U.S. F-35 fighter jets.

Turkey's procurement of the Russian-made S-400 air defense systems are not going to be postponed or halted, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said, noting that Ankara and Washington are continuing to exchange views to establish a committee to assess the impact of its purchase of the Russian missile defenses systems on the U.S. F-35 fighter jets.

Turkey is not just a client of U.S. F-35 fighter jets but also its technology partner, Turkish presidential spokesman said on April 18.