NATO

U.S. President Joe Biden has sent a letter to the U.S. Congress urging to approve the sale of F-16 fighter jets and modernization kits to Türkiye, according to the sources.

US President Joe Biden sent a letter to leaders of key Capitol Hill committees on Wednesday informing them of his intention to begin the formal notification process for the sale of Lockheed Martin F-16 aircraft to Turkey once Ankara completes Sweden's NATO accession process.

The Turkish Parliament has passed a bill on the approval of the ratification of the protocol on Sweden's accession to NATO on Tuesday.

After a parliamentary session that lasted about 4 hours, the bill was approved by 287 out of 346 members of parliament who participated in the vote.

Turkish legislators on Tuesday endorsed Sweden's membership in NATO, lifting a major hurdle on the previously nonaligned country's entry into the military alliance.

The legislators ratified Sweden's accession protocol by 287 votes to 55, with four abstentions. The ratification will come into effect after its publication in the Official Gazette, which is expected to be swift.

NATO yesterday signed contracts worth $1.2 billion to acquire over 200,000 155-millimeter artillery shells in the face of Russia's invasion on Ukraine.

Members of the Western military alliance have drained their stocks sending shipments of heavy ammunition to help Ukraine's forces battle Russia in a brutal war of attrition.

Turkey's parliament is widely expected to approve Sweden's NATO membership bid on Tuesday, clearing the biggest remaining hurdle to expanding the Western military alliance.

“In order to be fully effective, also in the future, we need a warfighting transformation of NATO”

In a bleak outlook, Admiral Rob Bauer, who chairs the bloc's Military Committee, said people should get ready for conscription within the next two decades. He said it is "not a given" that member states are at peace, as he praised Sweden for preparing its citizens for war.

Bulgaria is gearing up to enhance its defense capabilities with the imminent arrival of eight cutting-edge F-16 fighter jets from the United States in 2025, as announced by Admiral Emil Eftimov, the Chief of Defense. The decision to expedite the acquisition was crucial, ensuring delivery well before 2030.

Greek Captain Fotis Paraskevas took over the command duties of the Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Maritime Group Two (SNMCMG2) with the handover ceremony taking place at the Naval Base La Spezia in Italy on Friday, as was announced by the Hellenic National Defense General Staff on Monday.