By Humeyra Pamuk
(Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration is set to move ahead with the sale of a modernization package for Turkey’s existing F-16 aircraft, after leaders of U.S. congressional committees gave informal approval for the deal, sources familiar with the matter said.
The U.S. State Department could send the formal notification for the sale, which includes radars and avionics, as early as Monday, the sources said.
If it is cleared by Congress during the formal approval process, the package would be the first major military sale to Turkey that Congress has approved for years.
The State Department, which typically declines comment on pending arms sales, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Democratic and Republican leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations and House Foreign Affairs committees, who would have had to clear the modernization package, declined comment.
The sources, one U.S. official and another familiar with the matter, could not give a precise value for the deal, beyond saying that it would be in the millions of dollars. It follows Turkey approving Finland’s accession to the NATO military alliance and signs of easing tensions between Turkey and neighbor Greece ahead of Turkish elections due on May 15.
The package is separate from the proposed $20 billion sale of new Lockheed Martin Corp F-16 fighters and nearly 80 modernization kits that Turkey requested in October 2021.
Several U.S. lawmakers have resisted the larger package, citing issues including Ankara’s opposition to Sweden’s accession to NATO, Turkey’s policy on Syria and tensions with Greece.
(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Additional reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Don Durfee and Grant McCool)
