The Trump administration is moving forward with a deal to sell dozens of fighter jet engines to Turkey worth over $700 m...

The Trump administration is moving forward with a deal to sell dozens of fighter jet engines to Turkey worth over $700 million, overriding objections from Congress, according to four sources cited by Reuters. The engines, manufactured by General Electric, are intended for Turkey's first domestically produced fighter jet, the Kaan. Turkey launched the Kaan program in 2016 as part of its push for greater defense self-sufficiency, and Ankara has been waiting on U.S. approval for the engines for roughly a year. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan publicly complained about the delay nearly a year ago. The deal is expected to be finalized within days, after which the State Department will formally notify Congress, according to the sources. The top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, had raised objections during the informal review process and has not signed off on the package. The timing is significant. Turkey is set to host NATO leaders on July 7-8, and the move is widely seen as a goodwill gesture toward Ankara ahead of the summit. Trump has frequently praised Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and relations between the two countries have been generally warm under his administration. Still, the relationship has long been complicated by Turkey's 2019 purchase of Russia's S-400 air defense system, which led the U.S. to kick Ankara out of the F-35 program and impose sanctions. The Kaan fighter jet program accelerated largely as a result of that fallout. The NATO summit itself comes amid broader tensions within the alliance over defense spending and the role of allies during the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict in the Strait of Hormuz. #Turkey #NATO #USDefense