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US Reaffirms Pledge to Deliver Jets to Türkiye

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu shake hands during a news conference in Ankara, Türkiye February 20, 2023. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu shake hands during a news conference in Ankara, Türkiye February 20, 2023. (Reuters)
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US Reaffirms Pledge to Deliver Jets to Türkiye

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu shake hands during a news conference in Ankara, Türkiye February 20, 2023. (Reuters)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu shake hands during a news conference in Ankara, Türkiye February 20, 2023. (Reuters)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday reaffirmed Washington's commitment to delivering F-16 jets to Türkiye despite Turkish insistence that their approval should not depend on Ankara lifting objections to Sweden joining NATO.

Türkiye wants modernized versions of F-16 fighter jets for its ageing air force, but US Congress must approve any sale.

"The Biden administration strongly supports the package to both upgrade the existing F-16s and to provide new ones," Blinken told a press conference in Ankara.

But Blinken added he could not provide a "formal timeline" for approval and delivery.

It was Blinken's first visit to Türkiye as secretary of state in a trip that was planned before a 7.8-magnitude earthquake on February 6, which has now killed nearly 45,000 people in Türkiye and Syria.

The top US diplomat is due to hold talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan later on Monday in Ankara.

The United States, whose relations with Türkiye have been strained in recent years, has been looking for ways to persuade Erdogan to ratify NATO membership applications by Finland and Sweden.

Finland and Sweden dropped decades of military non-alignment and applied to join the US-led defense alliance last year in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

But Türkiye has yet to ratify their applications and Ankara has opposed Sweden's refusal to extradite dozens of suspects that Türkiye links to outlawed Kurdish militants and a failed 2016 coup.

On Monday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu dismissed any attempt to apply conditions to the F-16 jets approval.

"It would not be right to make Sweden and Finland's NATO membership a condition for the F-16s. They are two different issues," he said. "Our hands should not be tied."

Blinken said the United States "strongly" supported Finland and Sweden's admission into NATO "as quickly as possible".

"Finland and Sweden have already taken concrete steps" to address Türkiye’s concerns, he said.

Türkiye has signaled it is ready to accept Finland into NATO, but Cavusoglu said Kurdish militants continued "all kinds of activities including recruitment, terrorist propaganda" in Sweden.

Blinken arrived on Sunday at Incirlik air base in southern Türkiye, through which the United States has shipped aid after the earthquake. The United States has now contributed $185 million in assistance to Türkiye and Syria.

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World

Search Teams in Türkiye Recover Recorders after Plane Crash that Killed Libyan Military Officials

Turkish army soldiers stand guard as rescue teams search for the remains of a private jet carrying Libya's military chief and four others that crashed after taking off from Ankara, killing everyone on board, in Ankara, Turkey, early Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Efekan Akyuz)
Turkish army soldiers stand guard as rescue teams search for the remains of a private jet carrying Libya's military chief and four others that crashed after taking off from Ankara, killing everyone on board, in Ankara, Turkey, early Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Efekan Akyuz)
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Search Teams in Türkiye Recover Recorders after Plane Crash that Killed Libyan Military Officials

Turkish army soldiers stand guard as rescue teams search for the remains of a private jet carrying Libya's military chief and four others that crashed after taking off from Ankara, killing everyone on board, in Ankara, Turkey, early Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Efekan Akyuz)
Turkish army soldiers stand guard as rescue teams search for the remains of a private jet carrying Libya's military chief and four others that crashed after taking off from Ankara, killing everyone on board, in Ankara, Turkey, early Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Efekan Akyuz)

Search teams in Türkiye on Wednesday recovered the cockpit voice and flight data recorders from a jet crash that killed eight people, including western Libya’s military chief, while efforts to retrieve the victims' remains were still underway, Türkiye's interior minister said.

The private jet carrying Gen. Muhammad Ali Ahmad al-Haddad, four other military officials and three crew members crashed on Tuesday, after taking off from Türkiye's capital, Ankara, killing everyone on board. Libyan officials said that the cause of the crash was a technical malfunction on the plane.

The high-level Libyan delegation was on its way back to Tripoli after holding defense talks in Ankara aimed at boosting military cooperation between the two countries.

Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya told journalists at the site of the crash that wreckage was scattered across an area covering three square kilometers (more than a square mile), complicating recovery efforts. Authorities from the Turkish forensic medicine authority were working to recover and identify the remains, he said.

A 22-person delegation — including five family members — arrived from Libya early on Wednesday to assist in the investigation, he said.

Tripoli-based Libyan Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah confirmed the deaths on Tuesday, describing the crash on Facebook as a “tragic accident” and a “great loss” for Libya.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a telephone call with Dbeibah, during which he conveyed his condolences and expressed his sorrow over the deaths, his office said.

The Turkish leader later also offered his condolences during a televised speech, voicing solidarity with Libya.

"An investigation has been launched into this tragic incident that has deeply saddened us, and our ministries will provide information about its progress,” Erdogan said.

Al-Hadad was the top military commander in western Libya and played a crucial role in the ongoing, UN-brokered efforts to unify Libya’s military, which has split, much like the nation's other institutions.

The four other military officials who died in the crash were Gen. Al-Fitouri Ghraibil, the head of Libya’s ground forces, Brig. Gen. Mahmoud Al-Qatawi, who led the military manufacturing authority, Mohammed Al-Asawi Diab, adviser to the chief of staff, and Mohammed Omar Ahmed Mahjoub, a military photographer with the chief of staff’s office.

The identities of the three crew members weren't immediately released.

Turkish officials said that the Falcon 50-type business jet took off from Ankara’s Esenboga airport at 8:30 p.m. and that contact was lost around 40 minutes later. The plane notified air traffic control of an electrical fault and requested an emergency landing. The aircraft was redirected back to Esenboga, where preparations for its landing began.

The plane, however, disappeared from radar while descending for the emergency landing, the Turkish presidential communications office said.

The Libyan government declared a three-day period of national mourning. Flags would be flown half-staff at all state institutions, according to the government’s announcement on Facebook.

The wreckage was found near the village of Kesikkavak, in Haymana, a district about 70 kilometers (45 miles) south of Ankara.

At the crash site, search and recovery teams intensified their operations on Wednesday after a night of heavy rain and fog, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. Gendarmerie police sealed off the area while the Turkish disaster management agency, AFAD, set up a mobile coordination center. Specialized vehicles, such as tracked ambulances, were deployed because of the muddy terrain.

Türkiye has assigned four prosecutors to lead the investigation, and Yerlikaya that said the Turkish search and recovery teams included 408 personnel.

While in Ankara, al-Haddad had met with Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler and other officials.

World

Netanyahu: Israel to Spend $110 billion to Develop Independent Arms Industry in Next Decade

Two Israeli soldiers inside Gaza (AFP)
Two Israeli soldiers inside Gaza (AFP)
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Netanyahu: Israel to Spend $110 billion to Develop Independent Arms Industry in Next Decade

Two Israeli soldiers inside Gaza (AFP)
Two Israeli soldiers inside Gaza (AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said ​on Wednesday Israel would spend 350 billion shekels ($110 billion) on developing an independent arms to reduce ‌dependency on other ‌countries, AFP reported.

"We ‌will ⁠continue ​to ‌acquire essential supplies while independently arming ourselves," Netanyahu said at a ceremony for new pilots.

"I ⁠don't know if ‌a country can ‍be ‍completely independent but we ‍will strive ... to ensure our arms are produced as ​much as possible in Israel," he said.

"Our ⁠goal is to build an independent arms industry for the State of Israel and reduce the dependency on any party, including allies."

World

EU, France, Germany Slam US Visa Bans as 'Censorship' Dispute Deepens

European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton holds a press conference in Brussels, Belgium March 25, 2024. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton holds a press conference in Brussels, Belgium March 25, 2024. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
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EU, France, Germany Slam US Visa Bans as 'Censorship' Dispute Deepens

European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton holds a press conference in Brussels, Belgium March 25, 2024. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton holds a press conference in Brussels, Belgium March 25, 2024. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo

The European Union, France and Germany condemned US visa bans on European citizens combating online hate and ​disinformation, with Brussels saying on Wednesday it could "respond swiftly and decisively" against the "unjustified measures".

US President Donald Trump's administration imposed visa bans on Tuesday on five European citizens, including French former EU commissioner Thierry Breton, who it accuses of working to censor freedom of speech or unfairly target US tech giants with overly burdensome regulation.

A European Commission spokesperson said it "strongly condemns the US decision", adding: "Freedom of expression is a fundamental right in Europe and a shared core value with the United States across the democratic world."

EU FINED ELON MUSK'S X THIS MONTH

The visa bans are likely to exacerbate growing divergences between Washington and some European capitals over issues including free speech, defense, immigration, far-right politics, trade and the Russia-Ukraine war.

They come just weeks after a US National Security ‌Strategy document warned Europe ‌faced "civilizational erasure" and must change course if it is to remain a reliable ‌US ⁠ally.

Breton ​was one ‌of the architects of the EU's Digital Services Act, a landmark piece of legislation aimed at making the internet safer that has irritated US officials.

They were particularly riled by Brussels' sanction earlier this month against Elon Musk's X platform, which was fined 120 million euros for breaching online content rules. Musk and Breton have often sparred online over EU tech regulation, with Musk referring to him as the "tyrant of Europe".

The bans also targeted Imran Ahmed, the British CEO of the US-based Center for Countering Digital Hate; Anna-Lena von Hodenberg and Josephine Ballon of the German non-profit HateAid; and Clare Melford, co-founder of the Global Disinformation Index, according to US Under Secretary for Public ⁠Diplomacy Sarah Rogers.

EU LAW AIMS TO MAKE ONLINE WORLD SAFER

The EU's DSA is meant to make the online environment safer, in part by compelling tech giants to do ‌more to tackle illegal content, including hate speech and child sexual abuse material.

Washington ‍has said the EU was pursuing "undue" restrictions on freedom of ‍expression in its efforts to combat hateful speech, misinformation and disinformation, and that the DSA unfairly targets US tech giants ‍and US citizens.

The European Commission spokesperson said the EU had the right to regulate economic activity, and had requested more information from Washington about the measures.

"If needed, we will respond swiftly and decisively to defend our regulatory autonomy against unjustified measures," they said.

French President Emmanuel Macron said: "These measures amount to intimidation and coercion aimed at undermining European digital sovereignty."

On X, he said the DSA was approved in a democratic process, and existed "to ​ensure fair competition among platforms, without targeting any third country, and to ensure that what is illegal offline is also illegal online."

Breton, a former French finance minister and the European commissioner for the internal ⁠market from 2019 to 2024, was the most high-profile individual targeted.

"Is McCarthy's witch hunt back?" he wrote on X.

"As a reminder: 90% of the European Parliament - our democratically elected body - and all 27 Member States unanimously voted the DSA. To our American friends: Censorship isn't where you think it is."

GERMANY SAYS BANS ON ACTIVISTS 'UNACCEPTABLE'

Germany's justice ministry said the two German activists had the government's "support and solidarity" and the visa bans on them were unacceptable, adding that HateAid supported people affected by unlawful digital hate speech.

"Anyone who describes this as censorship is misrepresenting our constitutional system," it said in a statement. "The rules by which we want to live in the digital space in Germany and in Europe are not decided in Washington."

A Global Disinformation Index spokesperson called the visa bans "an authoritarian attack on free speech and an egregious act of government censorship."

"The Trump Administration is, once again, using the full weight of the federal government to intimidate, censor, and silence voices they disagree with," they said. "Their actions today are immoral, unlawful, and un-American."

Breton is not the first French person to ‌be sanctioned by the Trump administration.

In August, Washington sanctioned French judge Nicolas Yann Guillou, who sits on the International Criminal Court, for the tribunal's targeting of Israeli leaders and a past decision to investigate US officials.