Starmer, in Turkey, closes $11B fighter jet deal, the ‘biggest in a generation’

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Monday that London has signed an agreement to sell Eurofighter jets to NATO-member Turkey in a 10-year deal worth nearly $11 billion, after talks in Ankara with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

“This is a really significant deal, because it’s £8 billion ($10.7 billion) worth of orders… These are jobs that will last for 10 years, making the (Eurofighter) Typhoons, so really big for our country,” Starmer said.

Britain’s defense ministry described the order, which would involve 20 Eurofighters, as the “biggest fighter jet deal in a generation,” saying it would strengthen Turkey’s combat capabilities and bolster “NATO’s strength in a key region.”

“This is the southeast flank of NATO, and so having that capability locked in with the United Kingdom is really important for NATO,” Starmer said in the Turkish capital.

Erdogan hailed the agreement as a new symbol of defense cooperation with Britain.

“We regard this… as a new symbol of the strategic relations between our two close allies,” he said after the pair signed the agreement.

Last week, Erdogan held talks in Doha with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, with Turkey floating plans to acquire some of its Eurofighters.

Qatar ordered 24 Eurofighters in 2017, with the last two due to be delivered this year. It moved to acquire 12 more late last year, observers said.

Any such move would likely be part of the deal with London, which would have to grant its approval for a transfer, analysts said.

The Qatari leader will be in Ankara on Tuesday for talks to clarify certain outstanding issues, the Turkish official said.

The jets Britain was to sign over to Turkey on Monday were likely to be those that had been destined for Qatar, Aaron Stein, president of the Foreign Policy Research Institute, said, explaining that instead of being sent to Doha, “they’ll simply be shipped to Turkey.”

Turkish court brands jailed opposition leader a UK spy

The Starmer visit was partly clouded by a spying scandal that erupted late on Sunday, after a Turkish court charged Istanbul’s jailed opposition mayor with espionage over his links to a Turkish businessman allegedly spying for Britain.

Starmer arrived with his Defense Minister John Healey and Air Chief Marshall Harv Smyth, the head of Britain’s air force, who were welcomed by their Turkish counterparts, Turkey’s defense ministry said.

Turkey has been looking to modernize its air force and has been pushing to acquire 40 of the European-made fighter aircraft, which are jointly produced by Britain, Germany, Italy, and Spain.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, a Turkish official told AFP that Britain would hand over a number of jets on Monday, without saying how many.

Analysts said it would likely be two.

“Turkey and the Eurofighter is quite the saga,” Stein told AFP, saying that Ankara had turned down an offer to join the European consortium building the jets, focusing instead on the US fighter jet program.

“Ankara was invited to join the consortium or become an equal member a few times, but they chose the F-35,” he said.

Washington booted Ankara from its F-35 fighter program in 2019, over its purchase of an S-400 Russian surface-to-air missile defense system.

Erdogan raised the issue of the sale of F-35 fighter jets during a recent meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House.

Last year Ankara secured a $7-billion deal with Washington for 40 F-16s that have faced delays.

Turkish officials have said Turkey wants to acquire a total of 120 fighter jets — 40 Eurofighters, 40 US-made F-16s, and 40 F-35s — as a transitional fleet ahead of its own KAAN planes’ entry into service.

The UK deal also came as Turkey vies for influence in a post-war Gaza Strip. Israel said Monday it will not accept Turkish troops in the enclave, while US leaders have said they foresee a “constructive role” for Ankara, but would not force Israel to accept Turkish soldiers on the ground.

Erdogan, despite his country’s previous warm ties with Israel, has been an outspoken supporter of the Hamas terror group, and repeatedly compared Israel’s campaign in Gaza to the Holocaust.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.