Turkey To Supply 20 Eurofighters From UK To Boost Air Defense

An agreement for the comprehensive military transaction was signed late on Oct. 27 between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and visiting U.S. Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

The deal paves the way for further cooperation between the two countries as Turkey is also in close contact with Qatar and Oman for the acquisition of more Eurofighter Typhoons from these countries.

The Eurofighter Typhoons are a joint product of the U.K., Germany, Italy and Spain. The sale of 20 fighter jets to Turkey could be accomplished after all the members of the consortium have given consent. Turkey has become the 10th country to have the Eurofighter Typhoons in its military inventory.

“I view this agreement as yet another symbol of our strategic relationship as two close allied countries. I would like to thank Mr. Starmer and his team for the efforts they exerted at the Eurofighter Consortium throughout the process,” Erdoğan said at a press conference with Starmer.

“I believe that this cooperation with the United Kingdom will also pave the way for joint projects in the defense industry,” Erdoğan said, praising deepening ties between the two countries in all fields. 

“As you know, the U.K. is one of Turkey’s top trade and investment partners. We are committed to increasing our trade volume to 30 billion dollars in the first stage and then to 40 billion dollars, and we remain steadfast in our determination to reinforce our economic relations,” he stated.

“Our relevant institutions are taking the necessary steps in this direction, including updating our free trade agreement. We also focus on opportunities to undertake joint investments in third countries. We aim to cultivate new partnerships in the energy and defense industry,” added the president.

 ‘We announce our strategic partnership’

Starmer, for his part, hailed the military transaction deal between the two countries as historic and a win for NATO security.

Turkey and the U.K. are working more closely than in the past, and this partnership contributes to European security, he stressed.

“We are working for the security of Europe as NATO allies. We support Ukraine as part of the Coalition of the Willing and work together for peace in the Middle East,” the prime minister said at the press conference.

 “Today we have taken a very big step, and we announce our strategic partnership,” Starmer underlined, adding, “The U.K. will supply 20 Eurofighter Typhoon jetfighters. This will deepen the security of NATO and increase our bilateral defense industry cooperation.”