Turkish Defense Minister: Turkiye Is Committed to Its Responsibilities Toward NATO

Turkiye's Minister of Defense Yasar Guler stressed that Turkiye is fully committed to its responsibilities to NATO. In press remarks on Monday, the minister said: "our priority is to fulfil our responsibilities to NATO as an important ally and to strengthen the solidarity with our allies. Our focus should be that NATO is prepared, determined, and strong." Guler pointed out that Turkiye's membership in NATO does not prevent it from developing relations with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Regarding the F-16 aircraft deal with the United States, which Turkiye received approval for after it, in turn, approved Sweden's membership in NATO, the Turkish minister said that the acquisition of these fighter jets is continuing in line with the specified timetable and that talks are underway regarding the details of the deal. "We are pleased with the accord reached on the procurement of the F-16s and modernization, and we hope the project will be completed without a problem until the last jet is delivered ," the Turkish minister said. He added that Turkiye remained interested in buying 40 Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets from Germany, Britain, and Spain, but that there was no concrete development yet and he hoped for a positive response from its allies. Regarding the relations between Ankara and Baghdad, the Turkish Minister of Defense said that recent joint steps taken by Turkiye and Iraq in terms of counter-terrorism marked a turning point in ties, adding that technical work on establishing a joint operations center for military activities was continuing. Source: Qatar News Agency