Hegseth cancels meeting with Netanyahu over possible sale of F-35s to Turkiye, source tells Reuters

JERUSALEM: US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth canceled a meeting that had been scheduled for Wednesday to discuss ​the possible sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkiye with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, an Israeli source told Reuters.
Any such sale would likely anger Israeli officials. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said Hegseth had also been scheduled to meet Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on a ‌trip to Israel and ‌that Iran would feature in ​their ‌discussions.
US ⁠President ​Donald Trump ⁠said on Wednesday that the memorandum of understanding signed to end the conflict that the US and Israel launched against Iran was “over” and that he didn’t want to engage with Tehran.
The US embassy in Israel had no immediate comment on Hegseth’s planned meetings.
Turkiye, a NATO member, has long criticized Israeli operations ⁠in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, and it ‌has repeatedly accused Israel of ‌trying to undermine the US-Iran ceasefire deal ​mediated by Pakistan.
In an interview ‌with CNN on Tuesday, Netanyahu said he opposed the ‌sale of F-35s to Turkiye, and that he had made his opposition clear to Trump.
“It would destroy the power balance in the Middle East because Turkiye has aggressive aspirations,” Netanyahu told CNN.
Trump, ‌who is attending a NATO summit in Turkiye along with Hegseth, announced on Tuesday he ⁠would lift ⁠US sanctions imposed on Ankara over its 2019 purchase of Russian air defense missiles, and he signalled a willingness to sell the NATO ally F-35 fighter jets, a move likely to face strong resistance in Congress as well as in Israel.
Bilateral relations had deteriorated sharply over Turkiye’s acquisition of the Russian S-400 system, which prompted the US to impose sanctions on a major Turkish defense company and remove Ankara from the F-35 stealth fighter jet program.
Ties have improved ​markedly since Trump’s return ​to the White House in January 2025, but the jet sales remain blocked under US law.