ISTANBUL (Reuters) -Turkey’s deal to buy 20 Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets from Britain for 8 billion pounds ($10.7 billion) also includes a comprehensive weapons package, including MBDA Meteor air-to-air missiles and Brimstone ground attack missiles, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.
NATO allies Turkey and Britain signed the deal at a ceremony in Ankara on Monday, in a move aimed at deepening bilateral ties and bolstering Turkish air defences. Ankara has said it was also seeking 24 more jets, albeit lightly used, from Qatar and Oman.
Some analysts called the deal expensive, although details have not yet been disclosed officially by either party.
“The deal includes a comprehensive weapons package, including the MBDA Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile, advanced short-range air-to-air missile and Brimstone ground-attack missile,” the person told Reuters.
The deal comes as Turkey, which is enjoying its warmest ties with the West in years, seeks to take advantage of the advanced warplanes to make up ground with regional rivals such as Israel, which has unleashed strikes across the Middle East this year.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his government have said Turkey would receive the first of the batch of 20 Typhoons in 2030, and that the deal, for which talks began in 2023, included an option to buy more.
(Reporting by Jonathan SpicerWriting by Tuvan GumrukcuEditing by Frances Kerry)
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