British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday said London has signed an agreement with Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan to sell Eurofighter jets to Ankara in a 10-year deal worth nearly US$11 billion.
“This is a really significant deal, because it’s £8 billion (US$10.7 billion) worth of orders … these are jobs that will last for 10 years, making the [Eurofighter] Typhoons, so really big for our country,” he said in Ankara.
Starmer said the deal also represented a boost for Nato security, telling broadcasters in Turkey: “Having that capability locked in with the United Kingdom is really important for Nato.”
Britain’s defence ministry said the order would involve 20 Eurofighter jets.
In July, Turkey and the UK signed a preliminary deal for the Eurofighters, which are manufactured by a consortium comprising the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain and led by Britain’s BAE Systems.
The deal followed Germany’s reported decision to lift its long-standing opposition to the sale of the jets to Turkey.
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