The U.S. sale of F-35 stealth warplanes to Türkiye would “destroy” the balance of power in the Middle East, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said, with Athens avoiding the direct comment on the issue.
His remarks came after U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier in the day that he was considering such a move despite booting Türkiye out of the F-35 program in 2019 over Ankara’s purchase of a Russian air defense system.
“It would destroy the power balance in the Middle East, because Turkey, I think, has aggressive aspirations,” Netanyahu told CNN in a televised interview, adding: “When you give them that power, you’re going to see aggression in its wake.”
The Greek media have long suggested that the possibility of the sale has unsettled the Greek government as well.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis avoided direct comment on the reinstatement, but urged NATO to be sensitive to an “open threat of war.”
He was speaking on Wednesday right outside the Turkish president’s front door as he joined other leaders arriving for a key NATO summit.
Mitsotakis, who was in Ankara for the NATO summit, said the issue could be resolved through “good neighborly ties and cooperation.”
Yet, he also stated, “Sensitivities of all NATO allies should be taken into consideration against plans of Türkiye to expand its territorial waters.”
