“Give me an F-16 to approve the incorporation of Sweden.” “No, first approve the entry of Sweden, and then we can seriously discuss the F-16.” This is how they describe the recent stalled dialogue between U.S. President Biden and newly elected Turkish President Erdogansources in Washington that highlight the inherent difficulty of the two leaders retreating from the aforementioned positions.

What is at stake for Biden is not only the absolutely necessary expansion of the Alliance. This is the very authority of America, which, in a highly competitive international environment, seems unable to dispose of “the things of its NATO house” and put an end to the unprecedented blackmail of its ally.

And this predicament that the country is in is causing real outrage in Congress. On the other hand, for Erdogan, Sweden is the most valuable trump card that has fallen into his hands in recent years. He clearly does not intend to burn it without making a substantial profit.

Goal, meeting

This issue, which will largely determine the relationship between Washington and Ankara in the near future, Erdogan wants to discuss in the White House. The entire Turkish apparatus operating in Washington is working day and night to secure a meeting in the Oval Office, during which, according to estimates, the Turkish president, using his increased authority, will try to sell the image of an equal partner, and not a mere NATO ally.

Information suggests that if we see the announcement of such a meeting this summer, it will mean that preliminary negotiations on any issue have moved far ahead.

There is no doubt that if, in a hypothetical scenario, Ankara, without blackmail and conditions, approved the accession of Sweden before the July session, the climate in Congress would change significantly in its favor. But since no one expects this, President Biden still cannot promise Erdogan anything without the approval of the relevant committees.

The dialogue between the two presidents, who find it difficult to retreat from their positions, has reached a dead end so far.

Series of terms

An endorsement that should not be taken for granted, even if Sweden is given the green light. And that’s because influential players in Congress, such as Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez, Vice President Jim Reese, and House Foreign Relations Committee Vice Chairman Gregory Meeks, have clearly laid out a set of conditions for them to sign on the sale and upgrade. fighter.

Sweden is just one of those terms. The rest, which are related to the S-400, aggression in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean, Kurdish allies and Syria, and human rights at home, among others, are estimated not to be honored by the new Turkish government.

And maybe Erdogan, with such a fresh popular mandate and a victorious air, feels that he is on his side all the time, but in reality he has only a few months.

Starting in the fall, presidential candidate Biden will move at a campaign pace, and he will have little time to deal with it. And, above all, absolutely no desire to cause a crisis in their relationship with Congress or even with the influential Greek-American community in the run-up to the F-16.

Meanwhile, a telephone conversation took place between US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu about winning the election. According to the Anatoli agency, they discussed the mechanism of strategic cooperation between the two countries, as well as Sweden’s entry into NATO.