US President Donald Trump looks on as he arrives for a working session with G7 leaders and outreach partners on promoting economic growth, during the G7 Summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, June 17, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Christian Hartmann

US President Donald Trump reaffirmed his administration considering selling American military aircrafts to Turkey on Monday, downplaying concerns that the potential deal could degrade Israel’s regional military edge.

While speaking to press inside Air Force One on Monday, Trump confirmed that his administration is still weighing whether to transfer the F-35 fighter jet to Israel’s greatest regional rival. The president dismissed any concerns that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has that the aircraft transfer could erode the Jewish state’s air superiority.

“Nobody tells me what we should or shouldn’t sell. Turkey has been a good ally,” Trump said.

Earlier this month, reports surfaced that the Trump administration is considering easing restrictions on defense cooperation with Turkey, including the possible sale of F110 fighter engines for Ankara’s indigenous KAAN fighter program and, potentially, discussions about restoring Turkey’s participation in the F-35 program.

Israeli officials have argued that restoring Turkey’s access to advanced American fighter technology would not only erode Israel’s long-held military advantage but also strengthen a regional government that has increasingly positioned itself in opposition to Israeli security interests.

Trump also lavished praise on Turkey, calling the country a “tremendous ally” and saying that Ankara “did a good job with Syria.” He commended Turkey for possessing “tremendous military, very big military” while also briefly acknowledging that the country is “not a big fan of Israel.”

Israel and Turkey have pursued competing security objectives following the collapse of the Assad government in Syria, raising fears among Israeli officials of an expanding strategic rivalry. Against that backdrop, Israel maintains that supplying Turkey with F-35 stealth fighters or other advanced military technology would erode its long-standing qualitative military edge and strengthen a government that Jerusalem increasingly views as an adversary.

Meanwhile, U.S. officials continue to cite Turkey’s possession of the Russian S-400 air defense system as a major obstacle to any return to the F-35 program. Turkey was removed from the multinational F-35 program in 2019 after purchasing Russia’s S-400 air defense system, a move U.S. officials argued posed unacceptable security risks to the stealth aircraft’s sensitive technology. Washington has maintained that Turkey cannot rejoin the program while the Russian-made system remains in service.

Israeli officials have argued that restoring Turkey’s access to advanced American fighter technology would not only erode Israel’s long-held military advantage but also strengthen a regional government that has increasingly positioned itself in opposition to Israeli security interests. In an interview with Fox News earlier this month, Netanyahu stressed that selling the F-35 to Turkey would “upset the power balance in the Middle East, which is ultimately guaranteed by Israeli air superiority.”

Trump then took a swipe at Israel, saying that the country would cease to exist if it were not supported by his administration.

“And frankly, we’re being very nice to a lot of countries that would not survive without us. You know who wouldn’t survive without us? Israel,” Trump said.

Trump added that “Israel would have been terminated months ago, years ago,” if his administration did not end the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran Nuclear Deal.

The 2015 deal, which the Obama administration negotiated with Iran and other world powers, allowed Iran to enrich significant quantities of uranium to low levels of purity and stockpile them. It did not directly address the regime’s ballistic missile program but included an eight-year restriction on Iranian nuclear-capable ballistic missile activities.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to visit the United States tomorrow for the funeral of Sen. Lindsey Graham. While in the US, Netanyahu is scheduled to have face-t0-face meetings with senior U.S. officials, where discussions are expected to focus on the war in Gaza, Iran’s regional activities, and the broader U.S.-Israel strategic relationship. The meeting between Trump and Netanyahu is the eighth between the two leaders, but the first since the beginning of the Iran War.