U.S. passes bill blocking sale of F-35 jets to Turkey

U.S. passes bill blocking sale of F-35 jets to Turkey.

WASHINGTON,— The U.S. Senate passed a $716 billion defense policy bill on Monday, backing President Donald Trump’s call for a bigger, stronger military, which includes an amendment prohibiting sales of F-35 jets to Turkey.

The U.S. Senate’s decision to pass a bill prohibiting the sale of Lockheed Martin’s F-35 jets to Turkey is unfortunate and against the spirit of strategic partnership, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said on Tuesday.

Yildirim was also quoted by broadcaster Haberturk as saying that Turkey was not without alternatives and that the bill would not make Turkey vulnerable.

US senators made the intervention in opposition to the ongoing imprisonment of a U.S. pastor, Andrew Brunson, in Smyrna on terror charges stemming from the 2016 coup attempt.

The U.S. is also concerned over a deal between Ankara and the Kremlin for the purchase of the S-400 missile system from Russia.

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