US President Donald Trump’s administration has formally notified Congress of its plan to sell dozens of jet engines worth more than $700 million to Turkey, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing a copy of the notification.
The engines, made by General Electric, are expected to power Turkey’s first domestically produced fighter jet, KAAN, a project Ankara launched in 2016 as part of efforts to reduce its reliance on foreign defense suppliers.
The State Department told Congress in a June 24 notification sent late Wednesday that the US government was prepared to approve the export after considering “political, military, economic, human rights and arms control considerations,” according to Reuters.
The move comes despite objections from some lawmakers over Turkey’s 2019 purchase of Russian S-400 missile defense systems, which led Washington to impose sanctions and remove Ankara from the F-35 fighter jet program.
Congress has 15 days to introduce a joint resolution of disapproval if it wants to block the sale. Such a measure would have to pass both chambers and could still be vetoed by Trump.
Representative Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, had objected to the sale during an informal review process and has not approved the package, Reuters cited two sources, including a US official, as saying.
Meeks said Wednesday that the administration had failed to make a “good-faith” effort to brief him on how the sale would affect US-Turkey ties and Turkey’s possession of the S-400s.
“These items will not be delivered for years, and the administration repeatedly ignored persistent requests for information and clarification on key aspects of US policy,” he said.
Asked Wednesday about the jet engines, the F-35 program and his plans for a NATO summit in Ankara next month, Trump said, “I’m going to probably do something that will make them very happy.”
The planned sale is seen as a significant gesture to Ankara ahead of the summit and to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, whom Trump views as an important ally.
Turkey’s acquisition of the S-400s has been one of the main sources of tension in relations with Washington. US officials have said the Russian systems pose a security risk to US-made combat aircraft, particularly the F-35.
Congress also passed a law barring F-35 sales to Turkey as long as Ankara keeps the S-400s.
Several Democratic lawmakers said Thursday they opposed the engine sale and warned the administration against allowing Turkey back into the F-35 program.
“We cannot reward Erdogan’s government while it continues to violate US law and threaten our reliable, democratic allies,” Representative Chris Pappas of New Hampshire said on social media. “Absolutely no F-35s to Turkey.”
Representative Dina Titus, a Nevada Democrat, said she would introduce a joint resolution of disapproval if Trump continued with the sale.