President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called on Monday for U.S. sanctions blocking some defense purchases by Türkiye to be lifted and for other “unilateral” measures that hinder the NATO allies’ ability to hit long-term bilateral trade targets to end.
Ties between the allies have been strained over a host of issues in recent years, ranging from policy differences in the Eastern Mediterranean, Syria and Gaza to Ankara’s purchase of S-400 air defense systems from Russia, which resulted in U.S. sanctions and Türkiye’s removal from the F-35 fighter jet program in 2019.
After that, Ankara worked to procure 40 Block-70 F-16 fighter jets and 79 modernization kits from Washington. The long-prolonged deal was approved earlier this year after Türkiye endorsed Sweden’s bid to join NATO, which also led to a thaw in relations.
Ankara and Washington have a long-term goal of $100 billion in bilateral trade, up from about $30 billion in 2023.
During a visit to New York for the U.N. General Assembly, Erdoğan told Turkish and American businesspeople that though he believed the goal would be possible to meet, cooperation in the defense industry had “fallen very short” of its potential due to the remaining restrictions.
“For this, unilateral applications like additional tariffs in the iron, steel and aluminum sectors, probes and the CAATSA sanctions need to be abandoned,” he said, referring to the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
“We expect you, sector representatives, to launch necessary initiatives within relevant institutions for these obstacles, which cause mutual losses, to be lifted.”
“I hope we have turned a new page with the F-16 modernization project, and we expect export restrictions in this field to be permanently lifted,” Erdoğan added.
Advantageous for supply chains
He also said Türkiye was advantageous for supply chains, citing cooperation on the production and procurement of 155 mm ammunition – an important shell in the Ukraine-Russia war – as an example.
Türkiye supports Ukraine but also opposes the sanctions against Russia and says they will not be circumvented on Turkish soil.
Apart from the F-16s, Türkiye has also been interested in the Eurofighter Typhoon jets from Germany, Britain and Spain, but it has complained of a lack of progress over Berlin’s reluctance.
On Monday, Erdoğan met German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in New York, his office said, adding he had conveyed Ankara’s readiness to improve cooperation in every area and take advantage of joint opportunities that would benefit both sides.
Addressing a roundtable meeting with American and Turkish businesspeople, Erdoğan said the economy is “one of the most important” dimensions of the relations between Türkiye and the U.S.
“America has been the second country that we export the most to and the fifth that we import the most from in the last two years,” he added.
“Our bilateral trade volume surpassed $30 billion last year. As I have said several times, we have a great potential to steadily increase the bilateral trade figures.”
The president also said he expects support in providing the necessary facilities, especially visas, for Turkish companies to enter the American market.
“Your support is crucial to improve our current projects and to build new partnerships that will contribute to our common security. I am of the belief that the American business world can assume more efficient roles in terms of supporting our efforts,” he said.
