White House: ‘Biden Supports F-16 Sale to Turkey, but…’

A spokesperson from the White House National Security Council stated that President Biden has long been supportive of the sale of F-16s to Turkey, but emphasized the crucial role of Congress in approving arms sales. The spokesperson mentioned that President Biden conveyed to Turkish President Erdoğan in their discussions the significance of Sweden’s NATO protocol approval before certain members of Congress give the green light to the F-16 sale.

After a phone call with U.S. President Joe Biden on December 14, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, in a statement to the press this week, indicated that Biden had told him that if Sweden’s NATO membership is approved in the Turkish Grand National Assembly, Biden would work to get the desired F-16s through Congress.

Erdoğan stated, “In our meeting with Mr. Biden, he expressed, ‘If you get this through the parliament, I will also get it through Congress in the same way.’ If we operate this simultaneously, we will have a much easier chance of passing it through our parliament.”