If Turkey wants F-16 aircraft, Ankara needs to cut off ties with Moscow

The United States wants Turkey to terminate relations with Russia for F-16 fighters.

Washington will sell military equipment only to those countries that share the values ​​of the United States, Robert Menendez, Chairman of the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations said, Greek news agency AMNA reports.

The senator listed the conditions under which he could withdraw his objections to the sale of F-16 aircraft to Ankara:

• Turkey needs to refuse from the acquisition of Russian S-400 air defense systems;
• stop flights over the Greek islands;
• terminate close relations with Moscow;
• and eliminate human rights violations, including the imprisonment of journalists and lawyers.

Menendez noted that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was not ready to take on any of those issues.

Robert Menendez is the politician who "holds the keys to the F-16" because he has the right to veto the sale of US weapons systems, AMNA said.