Only when Turkey accepts Sweden into NATO can there be a discussion about whether the US will allow the Turks to buy US F-16 aircraft, said US Permanent Ambassador to NATO Julianne Smith, effectively issuing an ultimatum to Ankara, but also setting the conditions for the acquisition of US aircraft.
On Wednesday, senior officials from Sweden, Finland and Turkey will meet in Ankara. The meeting is seen as a step toward Turkish approval of Sweden's application for NATO membership before the NATO summit in Vilnius in July.
"Sweden is ready, it is an extremely capable ally that has addressed the concerns raised by our friends in Turkey. We would love to welcome it with open arms to the alliance in the coming weeks," says US Ambassador to NATO Julianne Smith.
When US President Joe Biden delivered a similar message to Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish president asked the US to sell modern F-16 fighter jets to Turkey. During a press conference with Julianne Smith, he responded to a question from Dagens Nyheter on how the two issues are connected.
"The Biden administration certainly supports Turkey's efforts to modernize its military, including the F-16 project. But our friends in Congress have expressed their concerns about Sweden's ratification of the request," says Julianne Smith.
Her reference to the US Congress is because it has the final say on the export of military equipment. Members of Congress have, separately from the Biden administration, said they are very interested in seeing Sweden become a member. And only then could they address the issue of the F-16 project, Julianne Smith says, adding:
"So we in the US will continue to encourage both Turkey and Hungary to ratify all the necessary documents to ensure that Sweden can become a full member of the alliance. And then we will go from there in terms of the next step. Our focus now is to get Sweden across the finish line."
The US terms are clear, but nowhere is Turkish aggression against Greece and the potential use of US fighters against a NATO ally mentioned.
Recall that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has slammed the door on Sweden's entry into NATO as he "winked" at Russia-Iran blackmailing the US over F-16s.
It is well known that the US-NATO is keen on Sweden joining the alliance no later than July 11-12, when the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation summit will be held in Lithuania, further cornering Putin after Finland's recent entry.
For his part, Erdogan strongly objects to the Scandinavian country's entry into NATO, claiming that it harbours members of the PKK and FETO terrorist organisations.
Finally, the Turkish President is keen for the US to sell him 40 F-16 BLOCK-70s and 79 modernisation kits to strengthen his country's air force.
The above puzzle shows us that from now until July 12 we will witness a tough Turkish bargaining to get Erdogan to consent to Sweden's entry into NATO, a precondition of which, in our estimation, will be primarily the sale of F-16s from the US to Turkey.
