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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged President Donald Trump not to reopen the path for Turkey to acquire U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets during an appearance Monday, saying President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s hostility toward Israel and other nations makes the NATO ally an unacceptable security risk.
“For a regime infected by the Muslim Brotherhood, an extreme movement that hates America and chants ‘Death to America,’ from that side of the spectrum, I don’t think they should be given F-35s or the engines for their fighter jets,” he said, warning the move could “upset the power balance in the Middle East.”
Netanyahu’s remarks come ahead of Trump’s attendance at this week’s NATO summit in Ankara. The president has signaled a willingness to revisit Turkey’s participation in the F-35 program, years after Ankara was removed from the program because of its acquisition of the Russian-made S-400 missile defense system.
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Netanyahu maintained that the region’s security rests on Israel’s air superiority and the United States’ military posture, arguing that providing Turkey with the weaponry would jeopardize that balance.
The Israeli leader pointed to Erdoğan’s calls for Israel’s destruction, Turkey’s support for Hamas and its threats against fellow NATO member Greece as evidence that Ankara should not be entrusted with advanced military technology.
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“[Turkey] is governed by a man who calls openly for the annihilation of Israel,” he warned. “He’s threatening Greece, another NATO country, and he talks openly about conquering Jerusalem.”
“His foreign minister… said that the Jewish state hasn’t a place among humanity. Basically, it has to be wiped out. His interior minister, he said he looks forward to be the governor of Jerusalem.”
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Netanyahu also warned about Iran, claiming the country’s leadership remains committed to anti-American and anti-Israel values despite recent military setbacks, pointing to chants of “Death to Trump” and “Death to America” at the funeral of senior commanders killed in strikes.
“They are not America’s friend, and we should not let them have nuclear weapons or the means to deliver them… this is a battle of freedom versus fanaticism,” he cautioned.
Fox News’ Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.
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