Erdogan announced the easing of US CAATSA sanctions against Turkey

The US CAATSA sanctions imposed on Turkey have begun to ease. On May 17, President of the Republic Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters of his pool after a visit to Albania.

"We can safely say that mitigation is taking place in CAATSA. <...> I think yes, we will overcome this process much faster," TRT Haber TV channel quoted Erdogan as saying.

The Turkish president stressed that there should be no restrictions in the defense industry between the two countries, which are NATO allies. According to him, Ankara is interested in removing all barriers that contradict the spirit of strategic partnership with Washington.

"Every positive step in this direction is valuable for us. With the coming to power of my friend [US President Donald] We have reached a more open, constructive and sincere level of dialogue with Trump," Erdogan said, adding that the parties have common interests in security, economic and global challenges.

The Turkish President also stressed that the partnership between Ankara and Washington is vital for establishing stability in the region and in the world.

On May 4 last year, the head of the Turkish parliament's foreign relations commission, Fuat Oktay, said that the sanctions imposed by the United States over Ankara's purchase of Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems should be lifted. He also stated that Turkey does not intend to resume its participation in the development program of the new generation F-35 fighter.

Moscow signed a contract with Ankara for the supply of S-400 in 2017. At that time, Turkey was the first NATO country to purchase these systems from Russia. This decision caused a negative reaction from the United States and NATO. The White House has repeatedly warned the Turkish leadership about the negative consequences of arms purchases from Moscow, and in March 2020, it excluded Ankara from the program to create a new generation of F-35 fighter jets.