Trump says he will lift Turkey sanctions, decide on selling F-35s

July 7, 2026 9:24 AM EDT

A U.S. Air Force F-35 fighter jet arrives at the International Aerospace Exhibition ILA at Schoenefeld Airport in Schoenefeld, south of Berlin, Germany June 9, 2026. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

(Amends language in ‌headline)

ANKARA, Turkey, ​July ​7 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said he would lift sanctions ‌off Turkey and make a decision on ⁠a potential sale of F-35s to Ankara as ‌he began a ‌meeting on Tuesday with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan at a NATO summit.

"We're going ​to be taking the sanctions off," Trump told reporters when asked about the ⁠measures imposed under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions ​Act.

In 2020, Washington imposed CAATSA sanctions on Turkey over its acquisition of ​Russian S-400 air defense ‌systems. It also removed Ankara from the F-35 fighter jet program, ⁠a move Turkey called unjust and illegal.

Trump was expected to throw his support behind ⁠the potential sale of F-35s during the visit to ​Ankara, two sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday, even as legal and congressional hurdles ‌have yet to be fully resolved.

"It's a decision we're going ‌to make," Trump said. He said he ⁠and Erdogan would ‌also discuss trade.

(Reporting ​by Humeyra Pamuk, Katharine Jackson; Editing by Doina Chiacu and David ‌Ljunggren)



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