By Humeyra Pamuk
June 25 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump’s administration has formally notified Congress of its intention to sell dozens of jet engines worth more than $700 million to Turkey, according to a copy of the formal notification seen by Reuters on Thursday.
Reuters was first to report on Wednesday that the Trump administration planned to press ahead with the sale despite objections from some lawmakers over Turkey’s possession of Russian defense systems, acquired in 2019.
“The U.S. government
is prepared to license the export of these items having taken into account political, military, economic, human rights, and arms control considerations,” the State Department said in its notification to Congress, which was dated June 24 and sent late on Wednesday.
The sale is an important gesture to Ankara ahead of a pivotal NATO summit there next month and to Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, whom Trump considers a key ally.
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Congress has 15 days to introduce a joint resolution of disapproval if it wants to block the sale. Such a resolution would need to pass in both chambers and could be vetoed by Trump.
Representative Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee and a prominent critic of the engine sale, had raised objections during an informal review process with the administration and has not given his green light for the package, two sources, including a U.S. official, said.
In a statement on Wednesday, Meeks criticized what he described as the administration's failure to make a "good-faith" effort to brief him on the implications of the sale for bilateral ties as well as Turkey's possession of the S-400s.
"These items will not be delivered for years, and the administration repeatedly ignored persistent requests for information and clarification on key aspects of U.S. policy," Meeks said.
Asked on Wednesday about the jet engines, the F-35 program and his plans for the summit in Ankara, Trump said: "I'm going to probably do something that will make them very happy."
The engines, produced by General Electric, will power Turkey's first indigenous combat jet KAAN, a major project launched in 2016 as part of the NATO member's efforts to be more self-sufficient in its defense. It had grown frustrated by past hot-and-cold ties with the West and some arms embargoes, although Turkish officials acknowledge that it will take years before it replaces the American-made F-16s that form the backbone of its air force.
Turkey's 2019 acquisition of the Russian air defense systems has soured ties with the United States and hampered congressional support for Ankara. In response, Washington imposed sanctions and removed Turkey from the F-35 fighter jet program.
Congress also passed a law prohibiting any sales of F-35s to Turkey as long as Ankara remained in possession of the S-400s, saying the Russian systems pose a security risk to U.S.-made combat aircraft. Since then, it has remained a major flashpoint between the two countries even though Turkey enjoys warmer ties with Washington under Trump.
On Thursday, several Democratic lawmakers said they opposed the engine sale and cautioned the administration over selling Ankara any F-35s.
“We cannot reward Erdogan's government while it continues to violate U.S. law and threaten our reliable, democratic allies,” Representative Chris Pappas of New Hampshire said in a social media post. “Absolutely no F-35s to Turkey."
“If POTUS continues down this path, I will introduce a joint resolution of disapproval,” U.S. Representative Dina Titus, a Nevada Democrat, said in a social media post in reference to the sale of jet engines.
(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by Don Durfee and Edmund Klamann)
