Τελευταία εξελίξεις στη διαδικασία του F-16! Συχνές επαφές Αγκυρα-Ουάσινγκτον! – Δικλέ Τσανόβα ανέφερε
29.12.2023 12:23Son Güncelleme: 29.12.2023 12:24CNN TÜRK Ankara Representative Dicle Canova’s statement is as follows;
First, let us remember that Sweden’s NATO membership requires the approval of two countries, namely Turkey and Hungary, and the parliaments of both countries are currently on holiday. The Turkish Grand National Assembly until January 16th, and the Hungarian Parliament will not work until February 19th. Therefore, it is difficult for there to be any developments regarding Sweden’s membership due to the internal legislation of the two countries until mid-February. A new step was taken after US President Biden called President Erdogan on December 14th, and the membership protocol passed the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Parliament.
Right after that, US Secretary of State Blinken called Hakan Fidan. In fact, the US expected it to pass through parliament before December 31st, but this was not possible in terms of the functioning of the Turkish National Assembly. Now, based on the information I received, it is on the agenda to synchronize the approval of the F-16 purchase from the US with the membership process. However, it is still being discussed which step will be taken by whom at which stage.
It was reflected that in his phone call with President Erdogan, President Biden had a positive view on the developments regarding F-16 and stated that they were ready to present their offer to the Congress. Therefore, it is being discussed that after the General Assembly of the Turkish Grand National Assembly approves the protocol with Sweden, Biden may send some concrete messages to the Congress. Then there are the stages of publication in the Official Gazette and notification to NATO.
At which stage of these stages will the US administration present the F-16 offer to Congress? Is the message Biden will give after it passes through the Turkish National Assembly sufficient for Ankara?
Because, for years, the US administration has expressed that they do not have authority over the Congress, so saying it will not definitely pass is not convincing. In the past, it has been postponed or not approved in Congress for many reasons that are not related to the main issue or even related to local politics.
Therefore, my impression is that the proposed timetable in Ankara did not provide sufficient assurance. Different formulas are on the agenda, and these have also been conveyed to Washington. The US administration expects concrete action to be taken by the Turkish National Assembly. However, this action is more about when the official process related to the F-16 offer will be initiated than the message Biden will give.
How does the process work in the US? It is necessary to explain that. The US Department of State will write an official letter to Congress regarding the delivery of 40 F-16s to Turkey and the allocation of F16 modernization kits. There is no process in the general practice of a meeting in Congress about the letter’s evaluation. If a senator objects, it is recorded. If there is no objection, it is considered approved, and there is also a certain time interval for this.
The issue of when all this process will take place is still at the center of discussions, and contact between Ankara and Washington is expected to increase these days.
The Minister looked again: a police patrol that surprised those who saw it in Istanbul!
