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Congress to make determination on F-35s for Turkey

Defense officials have handed lawmakers a congressionally mandated report assessing the impact of Turkey’s removal from the F-35 program.
A Lockheed Martin F-35 aircraft is seen at the ILA Air Show in Berlin, Germany, April 25, 2018.    REUTERS/Axel Schmidt - RC1286FBA9D0
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Congress now has its chance to evaluate Turkey’s participation in building the F-35 stealth jet after Defense Secretary Jim Mattis delivered a report to Capitol Hill on the NATO ally’s $12 billion contribution to the program.

Lawmakers are weighing whether to kick Turkish firms out of the F-35 program amid fraught relations with the NATO ally. Turkey has shown interest in purchasing up to 100 of the latest-generation aircraft and has already taken possession of two of them, but Congress froze further deliveries pending the report on the US-Turkey relationship, including Turkey’s participation in the fighter jet’s supply chain.

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