Turkey’s Erdogan Must Choose, F-35 or S-400?
The latest news that Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is making a deal to purchase weapons from Russia has upset many government officials across the West and the entirety of the NATO alliance. According to the FDD, experts on foreign policy , this latest action begs the question, should Turkey be allowed to participate in the cooperative F-35 program? In recent years the NATO member country has been deepening its ties with Russia, and taken steps against the best interests of its Western allies under Erdogan’s rule. In addition to the direct actions they’ve taken against US military allies in Syria, and public displays of partnership with Vladimir Putin, Turkey has even kidnapped US citizens. Any of these actions on their own would draw Turkey’s loyalty to the Western alliance into question, but what’s extra concerning is the news that Turkey intends to purchase the S-400 ground-to-air weapons system from Russia in addition to purchasing the US made F-35 planes. A move that