In a significant development, U.S. President Donald Trump has announced to host Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday at the White House on September 25.
“We are working on many Trade and Military Deals with the President, including the large-scale purchase of Boeing aircraft, a major F-16 Deal, and a continuation of the F-35 talks, which we expect to conclude positively,” he wrote on Truth Social.
“President Erdogan and I have always had a very good relationship. I look forward to seeing him on the 25th!” Trump wrote on Friday.
I am pleased to host President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, of Turkey, at the White House on September 25th. We are working on many Trade and Military Deals with the President, including the large scale purchase of Boeing aircraft, a major F-16 Deal, and a continuation of the F-35…
— Trump Truth Social Posts On X (@TrumpTruthOnX) September 19, 2025
President Erdogan enjoyed good relations with President Trump during his first term from 2017 to 2021. It was also a period of strained bilateral relations due to disputes over Washington’s ties with Kurdish fighters and Ankara’s growing ties with Moscow. Turkey upset the USA after it purchased the S-400 Russian air defense system, and resultantly the US excluded Turkey from the joint production planes program, as well as cancelled the deal of sale of F-35 fighter jets.
“I believe my meeting with President Trump next week will contribute to halting the wars and conflicts in our region within the framework of our shared global peace vision,” Erdogan said in Ankara. President Erdogan is expected to visit the White House after the two leaders participated in the UN General Assembly in New York.
Değerli mevkidaşım ve dostum ABD Başkanı Sayın Donald Trump ile Beyaz Saray’da yapacağımız görüşmede, kapsamlı stratejik ilişkilere sahip olduğumuz müttefikimiz ABD ile başta ticaret, yatırım ve savunma sanayisi olmak üzere birçok konuyu ele alacağız.
Başkan Trump ile…
— Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (@RTErdogan) September 19, 2025
It is noteworthy to remember that Turkey is a U.S. non-NATO ally. The two leaders are expected to discuss a range of topics, from trade, investment, and cooperation in the defense industry. Turkish leader hopes that meeting to help halt wars and will help halt wars and conflict in our region.
“We will discuss trade, investment, and the defence industry at the White House,” he said. Earlier, the cancellation of the deal stopped Turkey from receiving 100 F-35 jets it had ordered, thus straining military and political ties between the two countries. After being excluded from the F-35 program, Turkey turned its focus to upgrading its existing air fleet. Ankara formally requested in 2021 to purchase 40 new F-16 fighter jets and nearly 80 modernization kits for its current fleet.
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The deal faced pushback in the U.S. Congress, where lawmakers opposed and expressed concerns over Turkey’s human rights records, regional military operations, especially in Syria, and its closeness with Russia. Still, the F-16 deal remained a focal point of Turkey-U.S. defense negotiations throughout the early 2020s.
Turkey is also interested in the Boeing aircraft as its national airline, Turkish Airlines, operates a large Boeing fleet. Trump’s renewed leadership would not only expand bilateral trade between the two countries but it would also signal a warming of economic ties, leaving the past behind in the turbulent relations. Washington has repeatedly stressed the strategic importance of Turkey as a NATO ally located at the crossroads of Europe and the Middle East.
However, Ankara’s cooperation with Moscow had created friction. The revival of F-35 talks, as Trump hinted, could mark a major shift, potentially bringing back Turkey into a program it was once expelled from.