State Department approves sale of 32 F-35 jet fighters to Poland

The sale would boost Poland's contributions to NATO and reduce the country's dependence on Russian equipment, a State Department official said in a statement (video from September 4)
The 27th annual International Defense Industry Exhibition in Kielce
Źródło: TVN24 News in English

The U.S. State Department said on Wednesday it had approved a proposed sale of 32 Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jets worth 6.5 billion dollars to Poland.

WATCH THE FULL EDITION OF TVN24'S NEWS IN ENGLISH AT TVN24 GO

In April, the Pentagon told Congress it was considering selling the jets to the European nation, a NATO member, as well as Greece, Romania, Spain and Singapore.

The sale would boost Poland's contributions to NATO and reduce the country's dependence on Russian equipment, a State Department official said in a statement. During the Cold War, Poland, which shares borders with Russia and fellow NATO member Germany, belonged to the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact.

The approval of the sale comes days after U.S. Vice President Mike Pence visited Poland, a key ally in the region, to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the start of World War Two.

Under President Donald Trump, the United States has rolled out a "Buy American" plan that relaxed restrictions on sales and encouraged U.S. officials to take a bigger role in increasing business overseas for the American weapons industry.

However, the United States began the process in April to remove Turkey from the multinational F-35 program after Ankara said it would proceed in purchasing a Russian S-400 missile defense system that NATO officials say is not compatible with the F-35.

Congress was notified of the State Department's approval on Tuesday, a State Department official said.

Autor: gf / Źródło: TVN24 News in English, Reuters

See also: