Turkey will receive fifth-generation F-35 fighter jets, US President Donald Trump said.

“Turkey will receive F-35s,” he said at a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on the sidelines of the alliance summit in Ankara.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had earlier said he was counting on a positive decision from the United States on the F-35 fighter jets following talks in Ankara with Trump, which took place on Tuesday evening.

In 2017, Turkey purchased from Russia four divisions of S-400 air defense systems worth $2.5 billion. In October 2019, Rosoboronexport (part of the state corporation Rostec) reported that the contract for the delivery of the systems had been fulfilled. After Turkey and Russia signed a contract for the supply of an S-400 regimental set, Ankara was excluded from the US program to develop next-generation F-35 fighter jets.