Ankara: President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the United States will lift sanctions on Turkiye that were imposed after Ankara purchased a Russian missile defence system, a move that led to the country being removed from the F-35 fighter jet programme.
There are still several legal hurdles before Turkiye can be fully readmitted to the US programme, but the removal of the sanctions -- imposed under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) -- would help ease the process for Ankara to regain access to the F-35s, a key objective of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and one that Trump predicted would eventually happen.
"We're going to be taking the sanctions off, OK?" Trump said in response to a question during a meeting with Erdogan at the presidential palace in Ankara. He said Cabinet officials were working on the matter.
Earlier, Trump said the possibility of selling F-35 fighter jets to Turkiye was "certainly something we will consider".
