By Humeyra Pamuk, Patricia Zengerle and Mike Stone
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden’s White House sent a letter to members of Congress on Wednesday urging approval of a $20 billion sale of Lockheed Martin F-16 aircraft and modernization kits to Turkey, three sources familiar with the letter told Reuters.
Turkey’s parliament ratified Sweden’s NATO membership bid on Tuesday, clearing a major hurdle to expanding the Western military alliance after 20 months of delay. The sources said the letter was sent on Wednesday, and that the administration has not yet formally notified Congress of plans for the sale.
Turkey’s failure to approve the ratification had been a major obstacle to winning congressional approval for the fighter jet deal. Lawmakers had said they were awaiting its approval – including President Tayyip Erdogan’s signature – before deciding whether to approve the sale.
Turkey requested in October 2021 to buy $20 billion of Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters and nearly 80 modernization kits for its existing warplanes.
Leaders of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations and House of Representatives Foreign Affairs committees review every major foreign arms sale. They regularly ask questions or raise concerns over human rights or diplomatic issues that can delay or stop such deals.
Sweden and Finland applied to enter NATO after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. While Finnish membership was sealed last year, Sweden’s bid had been held up by Turkey and Hungary.
(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk, Patricia Zengerle and Mike Stone; Editing by Leslie Adler and Ros Russell)
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