Türkiye’s Minister of National Defence, Yaşar Güler, has said Ankara does not foresee problems in the ongoing F-16 Viper procurement process, while underlining that Türkiye’s primary objective remains a return to the F-35 programme.
Güler made the remarks during the Ministry of National Defence’s annual assessment meeting with Ankara representatives of national media outlets. TurDef compiled the shared record of the briefings as reported across multiple outlets.
Addressing the most sensitive pillars of Türkiye–US defence relations — CAATSA sanctions, the F-16 Viper package and the F-35 programme — Güler said dedicated working groups are actively engaged to move the processes forward.
“We know that US President Donald Trump has taken steps to bring the lifting of CAATSA sanctions to the Senate, and that US officials are also working on this issue,” Güler said.
“We see no problem regarding the F-16 procurement. Of course, our priority will be the F-35s. We are aware that Israel and Greece have been lobbying against the delivery of these aircraft to us. We continue our own efforts for the removal of CAATSA sanctions. We have separate working groups for each of these issues, and when the process reaches the resolution stage, we will of course share it with you. Türkiye and the United States will resolve these matters,” he added.
Güler established the most detailed delivery timeline which shows the United Kingdom will supply 20 new Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft to Türkiye. The minister announced that the delivery schedule includes six aircraft for 2030 followed by eight aircraft in 2031 and six aircraft in 2032.
To accelerate force readiness, Güler outlined the technical framework of talks with Qatar and Oman for additional aircraft. Jets to be acquired from Qatar will have very low flight hours and will be transferred as a complete package, including munitions and ground support equipment.
For Oman, Güler said 12 aircraft will undergo modernisation before entering Turkish service. The aircraft will receive three major upgrades which include AESA radar technology and Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile capability and new avionics systems. The complete modernization of these aircraft will become operational by 2028.
Güler explained that all Eurofighter aircraft which enter service will run with Turkish-developed national software and indigenous munitions. He added that work is ongoing on domestic air-to-air solutions surpassing Meteor-class performance, noting that Türkiye intends not only to field them but also to offer them for export.
Responding to public debate over “second-hand aircraft,” Güler said many European countries continue to source surplus platforms to meet urgent needs, arguing that such criticism overlooks operational realities.
Highlighting Türkiye’s strategic autonomy vision, Güler said the aircraft would be operated with national software and indigenous weapons. “We will use our own ammunition with our own national software. In this process, we will build something better than Meteor, and if they want, we will sell it to them,” he said.
Güler concluded by announcing that pilot and maintenance training will begin as soon as possible in both Qatar and Oman. Turkish pilots already deployed with Türkiye’s air component in Qatar continue to operate alongside Qatari crews, he said, adding that Eurofighter pilot and maintainer training will be launched concurrently in both countries.
Author: Özgür Ekşi
