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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

Security Increased at US Fairford Air Base in England

People use their cameras as a USAF B-1 bomber approaches to land at RAF Fairford airbase, used by United States Air Force (USAF) personnel, amid the US–Israeli conflict with Iran, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, March 17, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo
People use their cameras as a USAF B-1 bomber approaches to land at RAF Fairford airbase, used by United States Air Force (USAF) personnel, amid the US–Israeli conflict with Iran, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, March 17, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo
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Security Increased at US Fairford Air Base in England

People use their cameras as a USAF B-1 bomber approaches to land at RAF Fairford airbase, used by United States Air Force (USAF) personnel, amid the US–Israeli conflict with Iran, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, March 17, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo
People use their cameras as a USAF B-1 bomber approaches to land at RAF Fairford airbase, used by United States Air Force (USAF) personnel, amid the US–Israeli conflict with Iran, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, March 17, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Melville/File Photo

Security ‌measures at a US air base in southwest England have significantly increased in recent days, with roadblocks and armed police preventing access and emergency vehicles parked nearby, a Reuters witness reported on Sunday.

A spokesperson for the US Air Force ‌said they ‌were aware of the current ‌reporting ⁠but would not ⁠discuss specific force protection measures.

"The 501st Combat Support Wing and our fellow UK-based Wings remain vigilant and will take appropriate actions to ensure ⁠the safety and security of ‌our US ‌service members, civilians, contractors, and their ‌families," the spokesperson said.

"We constantly ‌assess a variety of factors that determine what measures we institute or modify to protect our installations, ‌our people and their families."

Britain said in July ⁠its ⁠armed forces were ready to protect the country from any attack after Iran's Revolutionary Guards issued a warning not to allow US bombers to fly from Fairford.

Fairford, in Gloucestershire, has been used to launch operations against Iran during the Middle East conflict.

World

Bangkok Floods Force Thousands into Shelters

More than 330 millimeters (13 inches) of rain fell in some areas of Bangkok between Thursday and Sunday, the weather agency said. Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP
More than 330 millimeters (13 inches) of rain fell in some areas of Bangkok between Thursday and Sunday, the weather agency said. Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP
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Bangkok Floods Force Thousands into Shelters

More than 330 millimeters (13 inches) of rain fell in some areas of Bangkok between Thursday and Sunday, the weather agency said. Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP
More than 330 millimeters (13 inches) of rain fell in some areas of Bangkok between Thursday and Sunday, the weather agency said. Lillian SUWANRUMPHA / AFP

Thousands of Bangkok residents awoke in shelters on Sunday after flooding triggered by days of heavy rain in the Thai capital inundated homes and roads, with some starting to dry out their homes and belongings.

Nearly 4,900 people have been evacuated to shelters, with around 52,000 households affected by the floods, which prompted a disaster declaration across the capital, according to the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA).

More than 330 millimeters (13 inches) of rain fell in some areas of the city between Thursday and Sunday, the weather agency said.

Thailand is used to wet weather, and September is the peak of the rainy season, but several Bangkok residents said this year seemed worse.

"Our house was underwater for about 30 hours," office worker Kosin Nilset, who lives along the Premprachakorn canal on the outskirts of the capital, told AFP on Sunday morning.

"This time, the water level is higher than the 2011 flood," the 44-year-old said.

Widespread deluges across the Southeast Asian country in 2011 killed more than 500 people and damaged millions of homes.

Kosin and his family lifted their belongings once they saw the water level was higher than the canal retaining wall, but their ground floor was still left soaked.

"At least tap water and electricity are working," Kosin said, as he used a broom to sweep out water.

Pedestrians in plastic rain ponchos trudged through murky floodwaters in Bangkok's east -- knee-deep in some areas of a grocery store parking lot -- floating their belongings in plastic tubs alongside them, AFP journalists saw.

- 'Sleeping on the table' -

Water levels in Bangkok's network of canals remained high on Sunday morning, with authorities working to speed up drainage, the BMA said.

More rain was forecast throughout Sunday for Bangkok and its surrounding provinces, but would begin to taper off on Monday, it said.

Scientists warn that the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events will increase as the planet continues to heat up because of fossil fuel emissions.

Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt said several roads were still flooded and warned Bangkok residents in a Facebook Live post to avoid unnecessary travel.

Chadchart visited a temporary shelter on Saturday night in a school in the Kheha Romklao area, where he said about 1,000 people were evacuated.

Some rested on cots and benches with their dogs in hallways, while others lay with blankets on the floors of classrooms where desks and chairs were pushed to the side.

Hundreds of city schools will be closed on Monday, according to the BMA.

Some convenience stores had empty shelves over the weekend as residents raced to buy essentials.

The prime minister's office asked the public to avoid panic-buying and warned that price gouging was a criminal offence.

Thidarat Silsuwan, 56, lives alone in her partially submerged house along the Premprachakorn canal.

"I have been sleeping on the table for two days now," she told AFP.

She did not want to go to a shelter as she worked to clean up and salvage her belongings.

"I tried to lift everything up, but I gave up on large electric appliances like the refrigerator and washing machine. I guess they are broken."

World

Trump Predicts Cuba and US Will Make a Deal

A classic American car drives along Malecon during a power outage in Havana, Cuba, September 18, 2026. REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo
A classic American car drives along Malecon during a power outage in Havana, Cuba, September 18, 2026. REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo
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Trump Predicts Cuba and US Will Make a Deal

A classic American car drives along Malecon during a power outage in Havana, Cuba, September 18, 2026. REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo
A classic American car drives along Malecon during a power outage in Havana, Cuba, September 18, 2026. REUTERS/Ricardo Arduengo

President Donald Trump predicted on Saturday that the US and Cuba will reach an agreement and that he does not think military action will be necessary.

"I would say that Cuba and us will make a deal. I don't think ⁠we'll need the ⁠military," Trump told reporters at the White House.

The Trump administration has openly stated that its goal is to change Cuba's government. ⁠A US-imposed oil blockade implemented earlier this year has put the country under severe strain as it contends with fuel shortages and blackouts exacerbated by failing infrastructure.

"We want to help Cuba," Trump said before departing for Tennessee, according to Reuters.

"We want to open Cuba ⁠up ⁠to our people."

In an address to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump called Cuba a failed state and said "freedom will be coming" to the island nation.

The Cuban delegation walked out of the hall during that speech.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said at the UN later on Saturday ‌that Cuba will always be open for dialogue with the United States. ⁠He ⁠did not reference Trump's comments specifically.

"We are open to commercial and business relationships with US companies, just as we are with any other country," said Rodriguez, while also strongly condemning the US trade embargo on Cuba.

The US has maintained the embargo on Cuba for more than 60 years and the Trump administration has been stepping up pressure after using ​the military in ​January to remove Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.