By Ezgi Erkoyun
ISTANBUL (Reuters) -Turkey and Britain signed a preliminary deal allowing Ankara to operate Eurofighter Typhoon jets on Wednesday while Germany approved the delivery of 40 jets, which Turkey has sought to bolster defences in an increasingly volatile region.
NATO member Turkey has leaned on its own defence industry projects, including domestic jets, and foreign acquisitions to ramp up deterrence. Beyond the Eurofighters, it is in talks with Washington to buy 40 F-16s.
Separately, the German government has cleared the way for the delivery of 40 Eurofighter Typhoon jets to Turkey following a positive decision by the federal security council, the Spiegel news magazine reported on Wednesday.
The German defence ministry declined to comment and the federal council, whose approval is needed for arms exports, does not generally comment on its decisions.
Ankara has been in talks since 2023 to purchase 40 Eurofighter Typhoons, which are built by a consortium of Germany, Britain, Italy and Spain, represented by Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo.
Defence Minister Yasar Guler, at a signing ceremony with British Defence Secretary John Healey in Istanbul, said the agreements would strengthen bilateral ties and boost the NATO alliance’s air power, while supporting Ankara’s aerial capabilities.
“We welcome this positive step toward our country joining the Eurofighter Typhoon club, and want to reiterate our mutual ambition to complete the necessary arrangements as soon as possible,” he said.
The agreement comes after weeks of positive statements from Ankara and the Eurofighter consortium on the sale, with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan praising the German and British stance on the issue this week.
(Additional reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu and Ece Toksabay in Ankara; Additional reporting by Rachel More; writing by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Jonathan Spicer and Bernadette Baum)
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