From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, July 7, 2026
Sa’ar: I hope F-35 sale to Turkey won’t happen, US supports ‘critical’ need to preserve Israel’s military edge
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleNava Freiberg is The Times of Israel's deputy diplomatic correspondent.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar says he hopes that US President Donald Trump will not approve the sale of F-35 fighters to Turkey, stressing the “critical” need for Israel to maintain its US-guaranteed qualitative military edge, during a Jerusalem press conference alongside German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul.
“I will not make speculation about what President Trump will tell Mr. Erdogan,” Sa’ar says in response to a question from The Times of Israel on the matter, amid reports that Trump is expected to throw his support behind the potential sale during his visit to Ankara today.
“We made it clear that we oppose [the sale of] F-35 planes to Turkey,” he says, referring to remarks yesterday by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“It’s critical that Israel, in the region we are living, will maintain its qualitative military edge.] This was always the policy of the United States to support that advantage. And I’m sure this is also the policy of President Trump and his administration, which is a very friendly administration. And therefore, I hope it will not happen,” he says.
The Times of Israel Community.