Opposition parties demand US commitment on Turkey
Main opposition SYRIZA and PASOK-KINAL said the government’s top foreign policy priority is to prevent the sale of F-16s and new equipment to Turkey and not the purchase by Greece of F-35 fighter jets.
SYRIZA sources said Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis must push the issue with US President Joe Biden during his visit to Washington.
“Preventing the sale of F-16s to Turkey – and not a new arms race with the purchase of F-35s worth 4 billion euros – is what is needed, as is the explicit condemnation of Turkish aggression in the Aegean,” the sources said.
Regarding Ankara’s possible purchase of F-16s, SYRIZA MP Giorgos Katrougalos said if Mitsotakis fails to persuade Biden, “he must take the blame, even if Congress later acts as a guardian angel and the matter does not move forward.”
PASOK-KINAL said Mitsotakis must receive a clear commitment that “Turkey will not be rewarded with new equipment.”
