WASHINGTON — In a major break with a longtime ally, the Trump administration on Wednesday said Turkey is being kicked out of an American-led fighter aircraft program because it is buying a Russian air defense system that would aid Russian intelligence.
The decision has significant implications for the cohesion of NATO, whose central strategic purpose is to defend against Russian aggression. Now that NATO member Turkey has chosen to buy and deploy the Russian-made S-400 air defense, it will no longer be fully part of the alliance’s air defenses, which are at the core of NATO strategy.
The U.S. government’s concern is that the S-400 could be used to gather data on the capabilities of the F-35, and that the information could end up in Russian hands.
Pentagon officials sought to downplay the rift, noting that Turkey has been a key ally for more than six decades.
“The U.S. still values our strategic partnership with Turkey,” said Ellen Lord, the Pentagon’s chief weapons buyer, who told a news conference that the U.S. has suspended Turkey from the F-35 program and is beginning the process of its formal removal.
David Trachtenberg, the deputy undersecretary of defense for policy, told reporters the U.S.-Turkey military partnership “remains very strong,” and U.S. and Turkish forces will continue to exercise together. He declined to explain how Turkey can remain a full partner in NATO’s integrated air defense while using a weapon system built by NATO’s chief adversary.
It’s clear, however, that senior U.S. officials worry about the future of the relationship with Turkey. Mark Esper, Trump’s nominee to be the next secretary of defense, told his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday that it is “very disheartening to see how they have drifted over the past several years” away from the West.
Although it is never publicly acknowledged, the Pentagon stores nuclear weapons at Turkey’s Incirlik air base. Some national security experts question the wisdom of continuing that arrangement, given Turkey’s drift.
