Erdogan: If we don't get the "Eurofighter" from Europe, we will ask for help from allies outside NATO

2024-06-15 16:44:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Erdogan: If we don't get the "Eurofighter" from Europe, we will

The issue of the "Eurofighter", which is a joint production of Britain, Germany, Italy and Spain and which Ankara has been looking for for some time, was mentioned by the Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during his return from the G7 in Italy .

Specific aircraft are used by the air forces of the above countries, while it is a joint multinational cooperation at the level of their production. This time he left open the possibility of looking for another way out, even outside of NATO.

As he estimated, Germany, which initially imposed the "block" seems to be softening. However, he emphasized that even though Ankara's basic approach is to meet the needs of allies within NATO, if this is not done then we are not without alternatives.

More specifically, to the question of whether the Eurofighter issue was raised during his visit and whether the fact that Germany has blocked it can be overcome, Recep Tayyip Erdogan answered:

"We discussed this matter with Mr. Sanchez. As you know, Spain's training planes are important.

They have the ability or the ability to give us these trainer aircraft. But I told him about the possibility to help us in this matter at the point of contact with Germany. He has stated that there may be such a meeting regarding the Eurofighter. But above all, Eurofighter is important for us at the moment. Germany has now softened on the matter.

Our respective ministers are holding the necessary talks with their counterparts and will do so. Our basic approach is clear: We want our needs met primarily by our NATO allies. However, if at the end of the process there is a negative result, we are not without alternatives. Our KAAN now has wings. In the following periods, after the start of mass production and its inclusion in the arsenal, we will not have any problems in this regard.

There was a time when we went through a similar process with drones. At that time, we could not get them from our allies. Then what happened was that we produced our drones with the highest quality. Now, many countries are knocking on Turkey's door to buy them."/ CNA