WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump on Monday dismissed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s public cautioning against Washington selling F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, praising the NATO ally one day before he is set to meet Netanyahu at the White House.

“Nobody tells me what we should be selling,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. “Turkey has been a tremendous ally for me.”

Turkish-Israeli relations collapsed following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack and the war in Gaza, and Israeli officials, including the prime minister, have lately spoken of Ankara as a regional adversary. Speaking to Fox News earlier this month, Netanyahu called Turkey “a regime infected by the Muslim Brotherhood, an extreme movement that hates America and chants ‘Death to America.’”

“I don’t think they should be given F-35s or engines for their fighter jets,” he insisted at the time.

On Air Force One, Trump nodded to the tensions between Jerusalem and Ankara before lavishing more praise on Turkey. He has previously spoken highly of his relationship with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

“Turkey’s not a big fan of Israel, not a great fan of Bibi. But they’ve been great for me,” he added, offering a window into how he makes foreign........

© The Times of Israel