The sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey is contingent on NATO approval, says US Congress.

The United States Congress cannot support a $20 billion sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey until Ankara ratifies Sweden and Finland’s NATO memberships, a bipartisan group of senators said on Thursday.

After Russia invaded Ukraine, Sweden and Finland applied to join the transatlantic defence pact last year, but were met with unexpected opposition from Turkey and have since sought its support.

Ankara wants Helsinki and Stockholm to be tougher on the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which Turkey and the European Union consider a terrorist organisation, and another group it blames for a 2016 coup attempt.