[Jpost] The United States has decided to stop accepting any additional The two NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all....
allies have sparred publicly for months over
...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor....
's order for Russia's S-400 air defense system, which Washington says poses a threat to the Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 stealthy fighters, which Turkey also plans to buy.
The United States says Turkey cannot have both, but has avoided taking steps until now to curtail or halt planned training of
The two US officials, who spoke to Rooters this week on condition of anonymity, left open the possibility the decision could be reversed, perhaps if Turkey altered its plans. They said the decision so far only applied to upcoming rounds of
There has not yet been a formal decision to halt the training of the
Four
Turkey has expressed an interest in buying 100 of the fighters, which would have a total value of $9 billion at current prices.
If Turkey were removed from the F-35 program, it would be one of the most significant ruptures in recent history in the relationship between the two allies, experts said.
But strains in ties between Washington and Ankara already extend beyond the F-35 to include conflicting strategy in Syria, Iran sanctions and the detention of US consular staff in Turkey.
The disclosure of the decision on the pilots follows signs that Turkey is moving ahead with the S-400 purchase. Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on May 22 that
President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday it was "out of the question" for Turkey to back away from its deal with Moscow.
Kathryn Wheelbarger, one of the Pentagon's most senior policy officials, said last week that Turkey's completion of the transaction with Russia would be "devastating," dealing heavy blows to the F-35 program and to
"The S-400 is a Russian system designed to shoot down an aircraft like the F-35," said Wheelbarger, an acting assistant secretary of defense. "And it is inconceivable to imagine Russia not taking advantage of that (intelligence) collection opportunity."
The Pentagon declined comment on whether it would accept new
Erdogan said on Tuesday, however, that the United States had not "given us an offer as good as the S-400s."