US President Donald Trump held talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the White House on Thursday and signaled that the United States might soon lift its hold on sales of advanced fighter jets to Ankara.

During Trump’s first term, the US removed Turkey, a NATO ally, from its flagship F-35 fighter jet program after Turkey purchased an air defense system from Russia. US officials worried that Turkey’s use of Russia’s S-400 surface-to-air missile system could be used to gather data on the capabilities of the F-35 and that the information could end up in Russian hands.

Israel has also expressed concern in the past over the potential sale of the advanced F-35 fighter jets to Turkey and other nearby countries, as it is anxious to preserve its military qualitative edge in the region.

Today, Israel is the only country in the Middle East with F-35s in its arsenal, currently operating 45 of the aircraft with another 30 units on order.

Trump started his two-hour meeting with Erdogan by offering hope that a resolution to the matter could be found during the leaders’ talks.

Read More Here