Turkey on Tuesday accused Israel of spreading “disinformation” after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the United States not to sell F-35 fighter jets or jet engines to Ankara, saying such a move would upset the regional balance of power.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said Netanyahu’s remarks, made a day before US President Donald Trump was due to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at a NATO summit in Ankara, were part of a coordinated campaign to undermine Turkey’s defense requests.
“The baseless allegations recently circulated by Israeli officials in a coordinated manner and with calculated timing are part of a disinformation campaign,” the ministry said in a statement.
It accused Netanyahu and his government of trying to divert attention from what it called Israel’s “genocide in Gaza,” its occupation and annexation policies and its destabilizing actions in the region.
Netanyahu told Fox News on Monday that Turkey should not be given F-35 fighter jets or engines for its own fighter aircraft.
“I don’t think they should be given F-35s or the engines for their fighter jets, because that’ll upset the power balance in the Middle East,” Netanyahu said, arguing that regional stability depended on Israeli air superiority and the US military posture in the region.
His remarks came as Trump prepared to attend the July 7-8 NATO summit in Ankara, where Erdoğan is expected to press for progress on Turkey’s defense requests.
Trump last month suggested he could take steps that would please Erdoğan when asked about Turkey’s efforts to secure F110 jet engines and regain access to the F-35 program.
Turkey was removed from the US-led F-35 program in 2019 after acquiring Russia’s S-400 missile defense system, which Washington said could compromise the security of the advanced stealth aircraft.
Ankara is also seeking US-made F110 engines for early versions of KAAN, its domestically developed fifth-generation fighter jet. Analysts say Turkey wants the engines to move ahead with KAAN as it seeks to join a small group of countries capable of producing advanced combat aircraft.
The Foreign Ministry said Turkey wanted peace, stability and prosperity in the region and called on Israel to pursue what it described as a constructive and peaceful policy.
Turkey has become one of Israel’s fiercest critics since the start of the Gaza war, while Israel has increasingly pushed back against Ankara’s regional ambitions and defense ties with Washington.
© Agence France-Presse