Explainer: What to know about the amendment limiting jet sales to Turkey
Amendment 478, formerly 399, to the 2023 defense bill puts a new hurdle in Turkey’s pursuit of military equipment from its NATO ally.
Yasmeen Altaji | July 21, 2022
On July 14, the U.S. House passed an amendment prohibiting sales of F-16 fighter jets and modernization kits to Turkey unless the President can certify certain conditions.
New Jersey Democrat Frank Pallone, who offered the amendment along with New Hampshire Democrat Chris Pappas, indicated in a statement the amendment could curtail “increasingly belligerent rhetoric and aggression towards Greece.”
As Biden continues to encourage the deal and Turkey banks on U.S. equipment, the potential for a green light remains unclear.
What is Amendment 399?
The amendment to the 2023 defense programs bill, or National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), prohibits the sale or export of Lockheed Martin-made F-16 fighter jets unless certain conditions, including proof of national interest and certification that the jets are “not used by Turkey for repeated unauthorized territorial overflights of Greece,” are met. It’s a new hurdle in Turkey’s sought-after deal, which it initially requested in the fall of last year.
The passage of the amendment in the House follows a letter from 35 members of congress, including Pallone and Pappas, to Biden expressing concern by June reports indicating Biden’s intent to go through with a deal. The letter said such sales would “reward” Erdogan for “vast human rights abuses his regime continues to commit at home and abroad.” Among supporters of the letter were the U.S.-based Assyrian Policy Institute (API) and the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).
In a statement on social media, API said Turkey’s operations in Iraq and Syria “have had devastating consequences for Assyrians and other marginalized peoples in the region.”
Turkey’s cross-border conflicts
The amendment’s focus is tight on Turkey’s ongoing, decades-long conflict with Greece, rooted in issues including claims to islands in the Aegean Sea and disputes over the ethnically-split Cyprus. Tensions have recently manifested in Greece’s accusations of Turkish incursion of Greek airspace, which Ankara has denied and countered.
Beyond Greece, Turkey’s military operations have left its neighbors reeling.
In April, Turkey launched an ongoing ground-air operation in northern Iraq targeting suspected positions of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The campaign, called Operation Claw Lock, is the latest in Turkey’s ongoing conflict with the PKK, which has made civilians, including native Assyrians, subjects of armed conflict. On Wednesday, Turkish strikes killed eight tourists in northern Iraq, which Turkey’s foreign minister also denied.
Iraq has repeatedly accused Turkey of violating Iraq’s sovereignty by continuing such operations. Meanwhile, Turkey has amped up operations in Syria on similar grounds, targeting PKK and People’s Protection Units (YPG) positions primarily in the country’s northeast.
In its current iteration, the amendment makes no mention of Turkey’s operations in the Middle East.
What next?
Biden has voiced continued support of the deal, while Turkey holds onto hope that it trumps the amendment passed in the House. Turkey initially made a request for 40 F-16 fighter jets and nearly 80 upgrade kits last year.
The Senate is set to bring its authorization bill to a vote in September, according to a report from Politico.
Hear about this story and more in Episode 80 of The Word’s weekly podcast.