The Turkish authorities have confirmed for the first time their interest in the European Eurofighter fighter jet which, in recent months, has been gaining possibilities as a result of the war in Ukraine. Turkey has announced that it will buy the fighter developed by Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain if the United States does not sell it the F-16s that Ankara requested a year ago.
Ibrahim Kalin, presidential spokesman, has revealed to Turkish television NTV that the government is already holding negotiations with Europe on this operation. “Turkey will never run out of alternatives,” he added, referring to the F-16s that the country asked the United States in 2021, and on which he has not yet received a concrete response, largely because of the obstacles that the Capitol (seat of the US Congress) is putting on sale.
According to The Eurasian Times, Turkish forces currently have 270 F-16 C/Ds in service, making them the mainstay of their military aviation. Following the ill-fated F-35 fighter acquisition agreement, which the United States vetoed at the last moment in response to Turkey’s purchase of Russian S-400 missile systems, Ankara has sought to bolster its fleet with the purchase of another 40 F-16s and 80 modernization kits for as many fighters of this model.
Now, after a year without clear news from the US and with a notable Russian presence in the Black Sea that worries Turkey, as a result of the invasion of Ukraine, the Eurofighter options are gaining ground.
In a context in which Ankara does not maintain good relations with the United States due to the purchase of the aforementioned Russian S-400s, and in which it cannot continue with armament projects by the hand of Moscow, with whom it has now distanced itself to some extent (it remains an important partner) as a result of the war in Ukraine, his gaze turns to Europe. The old continent can offer with its Eurofigther the appropriate solution to cover the gap in capabilities that the country will have since the beginning of the next decade begins to withdraw its current fleet of F-16, and while the next generation indigenous fighter project TF-X advances. The possible purchase of Eurofighter fighters will include, in this framework, the consideration of acquiring technological know-how for the future Turkish fighter jet.