Ahead of the U.S. president's visit to Turkey for the NATO Summit, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the United States not to sell F-35 fighter jets or fighter aircraft engines to Turkey.
In an interview with Fox News on July 6, Netanyahu described the Turkish government as "a regime infected by the Muslim Brotherhood" and argued that selling F-35s to Ankara "would upset the balance of power in the Middle East, undermine Israel's air superiority, and weaken America's strategic position in the region."
At the same time, Netanyahu referred to Turkey as "a great country" but expressed regret that it is governed by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. He said: "Erdoğan is seeking American fighter jets while openly threatening to destroy Israel and occupying half of Cyprus."
The Israeli prime minister's opposition comes amid rising tensions and an escalating war of words between Israel and Turkey. While Turkey has accused Israel of the "mass killing of Palestinians," Israel last week formally recognized and condemned the Armenian genocide committed by the Ottoman Empire.
Relations between Israel and Turkey, once Israel's strongest bilateral relationship in the Middle East, have deteriorated sharply since Erdoğan came to power. The relationship has worsened even further since the outbreak of the Gaza war on October 7, 2023.
Last month, Reuters reported that the Trump administration had formally notified Congress of its intention to sell more than $700 million worth of jet engines to Turkey.
Commenting at the time on the possible sale of the engines and F-35 fighter jets, President Donald Trump said: "I'll probably do something that will make him very happy."
The sale of F-35 aircraft is widely viewed as a major strategic achievement for both Turkey and President Erdoğan, whom Trump considers one of his key allies.
