Spain puts on hold plans to acquire US F-35 Lightning II warplanes
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Spain halts F-35 fighter jet talks with Lockheed Martin, prioritizing European systems under a €10.5 billion defense plan.
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A US F-35 Lightning II fighter jet takes off from the Kadena Air Base airfield in Kadena town, west of Okinawa, southern Japan, Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023 (AP)
Spain has decided to postpone its plans to purchase F-35 fighter jets from the United States, according to a report by Spanish daily El Pais on Wednesday, which cited government sources.
Spain has officially put on hold plans to acquire the US-made F-35 Lightning II fighter jets for its armed forces, suspending preliminary talks with US defense company Lockheed Martin indefinitely despite earlier signs of interest and budgetary allocations, according to government sources.
In April, the Spanish government approved a €10.471 billion ($12.126 billion) defense spending plan while reaffirming its commitment to allocate 2% of GDP to defense and security.
However, the decision to allocate 85% of these funds toward European-made military systems has reportedly made the procurement of US-made aircraft incompatible with national defense priorities.
Previously, Spain opposed NATO's proposal to raise defense spending to 5% of the GDP, a measure proposed by US President Donald Trump in exchange for continued engagement in the military alliance.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has dismissed as "unreasonable" and "counterproductive" a new NATO proposal to increase member states' defense spending to 5% of GDP.
While stressing that he doesn't aim to disrupt next week's NATO summit in The Hague, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has pushed for greater flexibility in the proposed defense spending increase, suggesting the 5% target should either become optional or include provisions for Spain to exempt itself.
"Committing to a 5% target would not only be unreasonable but also counterproductive because it would move Spain further away from optimal spending and would hinder the EU’s ongoing efforts to strengthen its security and defense ecosystem," Sanchez stated.
