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[EmiPrime]

https://www.theguardian.com/politic...ns-100m-fighter-jet-deal-with-turkeys-erdogan

Theresa May and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have signed a £100m commitment to build new fighter jets, in a deal Downing Street hopes will see Britain become Turkey’s leading defence partner.

Despite concerns about Erdoğan’s human rights record and the increasingly authoritarian tone of his government, which has locked up thousands of political dissidents and protestors, a Downing Street spokeswoman said the two issues – human rights and trade – were distinct.

...

The defence deal will see BAE Systems collaborate with Turkish companies to build a bespoke Turkish jet, the TF-X. It is worth £100m – small in economic terms – but Britain hopes it will kick off a longstanding relationship, and open the door to becoming Turkey’s main defence provider. “We would expect this to unlock further deals,” the spokeswoman said.

May and Erdoğan also agreed to form a joint working group to begin talking about a bilateral trade deal that could be signed after Brexit.

I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry.

 

[BronsonLee]

100 million?

So like, what, 2 and a half jets

 

[Funyarinpa]

I'm Turkish.

I can only cry.

 

[Flux]

100 million?

So like, what, 2 and a half jets

More like 2 jets and the pilots + maintenance crew.

 

[Dubbedinenglish]

100 million?

So like, what, 2 and a half jets

One jet, a year's worth of replacement parts and a dozen high quality scans.

 

[autumnleaf]

But Turkey is that horrible place that made us run for the hills and leave the EU.

 

[EmiPrime]

100 million?

So like, what, 2 and a half jets

Small potatoes but potentially the start of something much bigger. More significantly she's also giving him legitimacy.

 

[1.21Gigawatts]

the two issues – human rights and trade – were distinct

Fuck everything.

 

[PJV3]

I feel dirty.

 

[Lime]

Money always trumps morals in the eyes of conservative shitstains like May

 

[Funyarinpa]

Fuck everything.

Fuck. Everything.

 

[Kusagari]

I wonder how long May stays consistent with the anti-Putin rhetoric before bending the knee.

 

[Tugatrix]

Saleswomen showing what is made off and...thas quite lacking

 

[Zaph]

a Downing Street spokeswoman said the two issues – human rights and trade – were distinct.

but Britain hopes it will kick off a longstanding relationship, and open the door to becoming Turkey’s main defence provider. “We would expect this to unlock further deals,” the spokeswoman said.

Fuck off


Sorry world, but you're witnessing the death rattles of a former superpower realising it's (small) place in the world.

 

[saelz8]

What spurred the UK to say "Fuck the EU" then look to countries like the US, Turkey and Russia to replace them? I don't understand.

Trump is also a fan of Erdogan. It's crazy how these terrible people are almost their own class. It's strange. It's as if being corrupt, rich or autocratic is a distinct club, regardless of region.

 

[Joni]

What spurred the UK to say "Fuck the EU" then look to countries like the US, Turkey and Russia to replace them? I don't understand.

Because the EU was looking to expand with Turkey.

 

[Zips]

I remember I used to think highly of the U.K., and could actually picture living there.

Now it's just a pile of poorly-governed crap like the U.S. has become, and I will have to fight to make sure Canada does not end up the same.

 

[Funyarinpa]

Fuck off

Seriously...

 

[PJV3]

She will probably head to the Philippines next.

 

[theaface]

But... but... isn't Turkey that place that's about to join the EU and flood the continent with all those nasty Syrian and Iraqi terrorists disguised as refugees? That's what that leaflet through my door told me. Are they our allies now? Could it be that somewhere along the way there was some inaccurate presentation of the facts?!

 

[Empty]

we sold billions of pounds worth of arms to the saudi's in 2015 and 2016 despite being well aware of the horrors they are inflicting on civilian populations in yemen with them. this is business as usual.

 

[tuxfool]

But... but... isn't Turkey that place that's about to join the EU and flood the continent with all those nasty Syrian and Iraqi terrorists disguised as refugees? That's what that leaflet through my door told me. Are they our allies now? Could it be that somewhere along the way there was some inaccurate presentation of the facts?!

Funnily enough the UK was the biggest cheerleader for Turkey's admission.

 

[Tea and Toast]

I understand why you'd be against dealing with a country such as Turkey but isn't doing

deals such as this (Deals with countries with questionable human rights records etc)

something that all countries do. I'm not saying it's right but that it isn't anything new,

especially to the U.K.

I have no idea how this stuff works though so correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[PJV3]

we sold billions of pounds worth of arms to the saudi's in 2015 and 2016 despite being well aware of the horrors they are inflicting on civilian populations in yemen with them. this is business as usual.

I think we mock the government for that stuff as well as nominating the Saudis to be on the UN human rights council.

 

[nubbe]

Churchill must be turning in his grave

 

[tuxfool]

I understand why you'd be against dealing with a country such as Turkey but isn't doing

deals such as this (Deals with countries with questionable human rights records etc)

something that all countries do. I'm not saying it's right but that it isn't anything new,

especially to the U.K.

I have no idea how this stuff works though so correct me if I'm wrong.

Sure. I'd say people are against any such deals. However, there isn't much that can be done and said over preexisting deals. You just don't want more of this shit.

 

[Lime]

Because the EU was looking to expand with Turkey.

It wasn't

 

[spons]

But... but... isn't Turkey that place that's about to join the EU and flood the continent with all those nasty Syrian and Iraqi terrorists disguised as refugees? That's what that leaflet through my door told me. Are they our allies now? Could it be that somewhere along the way there was some inaccurate presentation of the facts?!

Anyone claiming Turkey will ever join the EU is being silly, as it's a full-blown criminal state.

Anyway, fighter jets are probably going to be armed to kill Kurds and other dissidents. What's new.

 

[Zelias]

To be fair May probably admires Erdogan's authoritarianism and approach to human rights. Tory scum is Tory scum.

 

[autumnleaf]

I understand why you'd be against dealing with a country such as Turkey but isn't doing

deals such as this (Deals with countries with questionable human rights records etc)

something that all countries do. I'm not saying it's right but that it isn't anything new,

especially to the U.K.

I have no idea how this stuff works though so correct me if I'm wrong.

The great irony though in this case though is just how much of a big deal was made specifically out of Turkey as a reason to leave the EU.

 

[Sad Affleck]

Fuck everything.

It really is disgusting.

 

[Auto_aim1]

TAI TFX is a sexy jet but isn't it rolling out in 2025? Are they buying one plane? Lol.

 

[JonnyDBrit]

Aha, so May's clever scheme in response to being warned that she cannot negotiate trade deals with other countries after triggering Article 50 is to get them in before it's triggered!

Good grief.

 

[Empty]

I think we mock the government for that stuff as well as nominating the Saudis to be on the UN human rights council.

yeah or the recent cringey state visit from xi jinping to the uk where cameron/osborne prohibited any mention of human rights because they wanted to suck up on trade

guess i just want to make it clear that this is not a brexit thing, it's a british government since forever thing

 

[ClosingADoor]

100 million? That will surely make up for the lost EU trade you are going to have.

 

[Yaboosh]

Welcome to the axis of evil UK.

 

[FStubbs]

Aha, so May's clever scheme in response to being warned that she cannot negotiate trade deals with other countries after triggering Article 50 is to get them in before it's triggered!

Good grief.

She's behaving like a US Republican.

 

[avaya]

So ashamed to be British.

 

[Steel]

I feel like there's a gif missing here so far that's present in many similiar threads.

Don't worry, I'm sure this fighter jet deal will pay for the NHS for a few days!

 

[nampad]

British government isn't far off from Erdogan so no surprise they are willing to work together.

100 million?

So like, what, 2 and a half jets

That also crossed my mind.

 

[Hazzuh]

I wonder how long May stays consistent with the anti-Putin rhetoric before bending the knee.

Britain has been more consistently anti-Putin than most of the other major EU countries.

 

[eot]

Turkey is a NATO member, nothing strange about the UK selling arms to them.

Sweden sells weapons to Saudi Arabia ffs.

 

[Peter Ian Staker]

I thought they were transitioning to the F35. Was the F35 so expensive that building their own would be cheaper?

 

[Furoba]

Well they ll only need a few planes since they purged most fighter pilots.

 

[Pizza con salsiccia]

100 million?

So like, what, 2 and a half jets

Reading, how does that work?

Britain hopes it will kick off a longstanding relationship, and open the door to becoming Turkey’s main defence provider

From OP.

 

[purseowner]

What a morally repugnant country I live in.

 

[Auto_aim1]

I thought they were transitioning to the F35. Was the F35 so expensive that building their own would be cheaper?

They are. They are gonna get around 40 F35 planes.

 

[Joni]

It wasn't

You sound like an expert. We don't want that kind of people.

 

[Linkstrikesback]

Yes, it's quite clear that Teresa follows the general Tory path of "human rights? Haha", after all, she's leading us out of the EU just so her party can scrap a number of those , no matter how much trade we lose as a result.

 

[RamzaIsCool]

You guys do realise that Turkey has 115 F-35's on order, which is a joint project of multiple countries. That their current new main battle tank (Altay) is a hybrid of the Korean K2 and German Leopard tank. That their attack helicopter the T-129 is basically a souped up version of the İtalian A-129. This list goes on and on. My point is i get that the Erdoğan regime is iffy as fuck, but that never stopped the defense industry before. Why is everybody freaking out all of sudden as if this deal is suprising.