British Prime Minister, Theresa May, looks at Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, after they reviewed an honour guard during her welcome ceremony prior to their meeting in Ankara, Turkey, Saturday, Jan. 28, 2017.

ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey and Britain signed a deal to jointly build fighter jets during Prime Minister Theresa May's visit to Ankara on Saturday, even as the British leader called on Turkey's government to uphold democracy and abide by human rights standards.

Britain's BAE Systems and Turkish Aerospace industries signed the 100 million-pound (nearly $125.5 million) agreement establishing a partnership for the development of Turkey's fighter jet program after May met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other Turkish officials about boosting trade between the countries once Britain leaves the European Union.

The two countries agreed to start preparatory work for a future free trade agreement and also talked about increasing cooperation in security and counterterrorism.

"This agreement underlines once again that Britain is a great, global, trading nation and that we are open for business," May said of the fighter jet deal, according to a statement. "It marks the start of a new and deeper trading relationship with Turkey and will potentially secure British and Turkish jobs and prosperity for decades to come."

May flew overnight to Ankara by RAF Voyager jet from the U.S., where she and U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday proclaimed a new chapter in the trans-Atlantic "special relationship."

The visit to Turkey, an important but complicated NATO ally, came amid pressure at home to condemn Turkey's clampdown on civil liberties since the government crushed a coup attempt in July.

"I am proud that the U.K. stood with you on the 15th of July last year in defense of your democracy," May said as she and Erdogan delivered brief statements to the media following their talks.

"And now it is important that Turkey sustains that democracy by maintaining the rule of law and upholding its international human rights obligations — as the government has undertaken to do," she said.

Turkey has detained tens of thousands of people suspected of links to a movement led by U.S.-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom the government accuses of orchestrating the failed coup attempt. More than 100,000 others have been dismissed from government jobs.

The crackdown extended to other government opponents. More than a hundred journalists and pro-Kurdish party leaders are in jail.

During a joint news conference with May, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim strongly criticized Trump's move to suspend the admission of refugees, saying "you cannot settle this issue by building walls."

"Nobody leaves their homes for nothing," said Yildirim, whose country has admitted some 3 million refugees. "They came here to save their lives and our doors were open. And if the same thing happened again, we would do it again."

Yildirim also complained of insufficient backing for Turkish efforts to support the refugees, saying the expression of "appreciation" to Turkey was "not enough."

May said of Trump's announcement on refugees: "The United States is responsible for the United States' policy on refugees."

May, who was paying her first visit to Turkey since becoming prime minister, arrived for talks with Erdogan to find her image dominating television screens in the presidential palace, which were showing footage of her visit to the White House.

May laughed when Erdogan said her trip to Washington "was well-covered in Turkey."

In his statement, the Turkish leader said the two countries would aim to increase their bilateral trade volume from the current $15.6 billion to some $20 billion.

Earlier, May laid a wreath in the red and white colors of the Turkish flag at the tomb of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the modern Turkish Republic, before meeting Erdogan at the vast presidential palace.

She said Britain and Turkey should "renew our efforts to fulfil Ataturk's vision of peace at home and peace in the world."

Turkey has suffered multiple deadly attacks in the past two years, carried out by the Islamic State group or by Kurdish militants, including an IS raid on a nightclub in Istanbul during New Year's celebrations that killed 39 people.

Kate Allen, head of Amnesty International UK, said the visit was a "vital opportunity" for May to ask "probing questions" about allegations of the Turkish government's excessive use of force and ill-treatment of detainees.

May and Erdogan also discussed the conflict in Syria and efforts to reunite Cyprus.

Erdogan said Turkey was seeking a "different concept" in its cooperation with allies, including Britain, in its fight against the Islamic State group in Syria.

Turkey has criticized what it calls insufficient support from the U.S.-led anti-IS coalition in its military drive to liberate a key town in northern Syria from the extremists.</s>Turkey and Britain signed a deal to jointly build fighter jets during Prime Minister Theresa May's visit to Ankara, even as the British leader called on Turkey's government to uphold democracy and abide by human rights standards.

Britain's BAE Systems and Turkish Aerospace industries signed the nearly $US125.5 million agreement establishing a partnership for the development of Turkey's fighter jet program as May met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other Turkish officials about boosting trade between the countries once Britain leaves the European Union.

"This agreement underlines once again that Britain is a great, global, trading nation and that we are open for business," May said, according to a statement from her office.

"It marks the start of a new and deeper trading relationship with Turkey and will potentially secure British and Turkish jobs and prosperity for decades to come."

May flew overnight to Ankara by RAF Voyager jet from the US, where she and US President Donald Trump proclaimed a new chapter in the trans-Atlantic "special relationship."

The visit to Turkey, an important but complicated NATO ally, came amid pressure at home to condemn Turkey's clampdown on civil liberties since the government crushed a coup attempt in July.

"I am proud that the UK stood with you on the 15th of July last year in defense of your democracy," May said, as she and Erdogan delivered brief statements to the media following their talks.

"And now it is important that Turkey sustains that democracy by maintaining the rule of law and upholding its international human rights obligations - as the government has undertaken to do," she said.

Turkey has detained tens of thousands of people suspected of links to a movement led by US-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom the government accuses of orchestrating the failed coup attempt. More than 100,000 others have been dismissed from government jobs.</s>Prime minister also uses last leg of diplomatic tour to issue warning to Turkish president to respect human rights obligations

Theresa May issued a stern warning to Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan about respecting human rights yesterday as she prepared to sign a £100m fighter jet deal that Downing Street hopes will lead to Britain becoming Turkey’s main defence partner.

May was in Ankara on the final leg of a diplomatic tour that had taken her to Washington to meet Donald Trump and underlined the compromises inherent in seeking closer trade and diplomatic links outside the European Union in the build-up to Brexit.

Turkey is a fellow member of Nato and has cooperated with Europe in tackling the refugee crisis, but Erdoğan’s government has locked up thousands of political dissidents and protesters in the wake of an attempted coup last year.

Theresa May looks for new friends among the world’s strongmen | Simon Tisdall Read more

Speaking alongside a stony-faced Erdoğan in his opulent office, May said: “Turkey is one of the UK’s oldest friends – our relations stretch back over 400 years – but there is much that we can do in the future to build on that relationship together. I’m proud that the UK stood with you on 15 July last year in defence of democracy, and now it is important that Turkey sustains that democracy by maintaining the rule of law and upholding its international human rights obligations as the government has undertaken to do.”

Erdoğan said the two countries would press ahead with talks aimed at boosting business ties, adding that he hoped that trade between the two countries, now worth $15bn, could soon reach $20bn. The pair also discussed security and counter-terrorism cooperation and the conflict in Syria.

Downing Street insisted that there was no contradiction between having concerns about a country’s human rights record and signing trade deals. “The PM’s approach is quite clear: she thinks it is important and in the UK’s interests to engage with Turkey.”

But May faced criticism from some politicians for doing business with Turkey at all. The Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron said: “As Theresa May seeks trade deals with ever more unsavoury leaders, she ignores the simple point that the most successful countries around the world respect human rights. Economies flourish in free societies.”

Human rights not on the agenda for Theresa May's visit to Turkey Read more

The prime minister, who had earlier laid a wreath at the mausoleum of Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey, said: “This agreement underlines once again that Britain is a great, global trading nation and that we are open for business.”

Andrew Smith, of Campaign Against Arms Trade, said the deal signed with Turkey confirmed that the UK was prepared to sell weapons to countries that flouted international human rights laws. “There is a hypocrisy at the heart of UK foreign policy, and the message this sends to those being repressed or locked up for their beliefs is that their human rights don’t matter. The fawning images and uncritical support are not just a propaganda victory for Erdoğan; they’re a slap in the face for human rights campaigners and political prisoners across Turkey.”

Speaking before the prime minister’s arrival in Turkey, Amnesty International’s UK director, Kate Allen, said the visit was a “vital opportunity” for May to ask “probing questions” about allegations of excessive use of force and ill-treatment of detainees by Erdoğan’s security forces. The human rights situation in Turkey had “deteriorated markedly” during the state of emergency imposed after last July’s botched coup, said Amnesty.

Separately Downing Street announced that, as a result of her talks with Trump, May had agreed to set up a preliminary “trade negotiation agreement” with Washington, aimed at smoothing the way to a bilateral trade deal when Britain leaves the EU.

Britain must tread carefully in laying the groundwork for future trading relations, because it is not allowed to open formal negotiations with other countries while still inside the EU. However, No 10 sources suggested there were a series of steps that could be taken, short of drawing up a deal, that could smooth the path to the post-Brexit world. That could include lowering so-called non-tariff barriers, such as bans on particular products, and cutting down on regulations.

Liam Fox, the international trade secretary, has been travelling around the globe seeking to lay the groundwork for future trade talks.

The Turkish defence deal will see BAE Systems collaborate with Turkish companies to build a bespoke fighter jet, the TF-X. It is worth £100m – small in economic terms, but Britain hopes it will kick off a long relationship and open the door to becoming Turkey’s main defence provider. “We would expect this to unlock further deals,” a 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. Britain currently trades with Turkey through Ankara’s trade deal with the EU, which will no longer be valid when Britain leaves. The working group will be the 13th Britain has established to scope out potential agreements.

The Turkish prime minister, Binali Yıldırım, said that, as well as signing the so-called “heads of agreement” for the jet aircraft deal, May and Erdoğan discussed security cooperation and counter-terrorism.</s>Following talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım, Theresa May said the two countries have “agreed to strengthen our security relationship, intelligence sharing, aviation security and domestic security”. The British Prime Minister said Britain will continue working together with Turkey to “fight Daesh”, another term for ISIS. During a joint press conference with Prime Minister Yıldırım in Ankara, she said: “We will help Turkey, and never forget that in the last 18 months over 1,500 Turkish civilians and security personnel have been killed. “We will also work together to protect the 1.7million British tourists who travel to Turkey each year.”

The Tory leader, speaking a day after visiting new US President Donald Trump at the White House, paid tribute to Turkey for hosting more than 3m refugees from surrounding countries. She added Britain is working together with Turkey and Greece to secure an early agreement to ensure a “stable Cyprus for all people”. Mrs May added she was pleased with the negotiations so far.

Keen to emphasise how Turkey and Britain will have a strengthened relationship following the talks, she revealed the two country’s have agreed to establish a trade working group as part of a “new and unique framework”. An hour before the press conference Mrs May and Mr Yildirim announced a £100m deal between BAE Systems and TAI (Turkish Aerospace Industries) to work together to develop the TF-X fighter programme.

She told reporters: “BAE and TAI are in the pre-design phase for the Turkish jet TF-X which is more than just a trade deal. “This is the start of a deep defence project.

Mrs May refused to answer questions about how she felt regarding Mr Trump barring visitors from seven mainly Muslim nations after reports emerged today of Muslims with US visas being refused entry to the country. After being pushed to answer, she said: “The US is responsible from the US policy on refugees. “The UK is responsible for the UK’s policy and we have brought vulnerable refugees to the UK as well as addressing the root cause of the problem.”

She spoke of the “significant contribution” Turkey has made to helping the millions of refugees fleeing countries in the Middle East. The Prime Minister revealed she raised the issue of human rights with President Erdogan and expected Turkey to adhere to global human rights laws. Mr Yildirim was more direct in his condemnation of Mr Trump’s attitude to immigration. He said: “The refugee issue is a global issue. There are 55m refugees worldwide. “You cannot settle this issue by constructing walls.</s>ANKARA: Britain’s BAE Systems on Saturday signed a deal with Turkey’s national aerospace firm to develop a new generation of Turkish fighter jets, the British government said in a statement.

Under the deal signed in Ankara during a visit by British Prime Minister Theresa May, BAE Systems and state-owned Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) will establish a partnership for the development of the TF-X fighter jet.

Commenting on the agreement, May said it indicated that “Britain is a great, global, trading nation and that we are open for business”, after the Brexit vote saw the country seeking new partners for trade.

“It marks the start of a new and deeper trading relationship with Turkey and will potentially secure British and Turkish jobs and prosperity for decades to come,” May added.

The deal is a so-called Heads of Agreement which is non-binding and will only be obligatory once formal contracts are signed.

The initial phase is worth over 100 million pounds, Downing Street said.

But the agreement can pave the way for further deals potentially worth billions of pounds over a 20-year lifespan, May’s spokeswoman told reporters.

Currently the Turkish air force flies F-16s, some of which were used to bomb parliament by rogue elements in the military during the attempted overthrow of Erdogan last year.

Ankara has long mooted the plan to build its own homegrown fighter jets.

After a controversial visit to the United States meeting President Donald Trump, the spokeswoman stressed that it was in the UK’s national interest to engage with Turkey on trade and defence despite criticism at home and abroad of May’s cosying up to Erdogan.

“Our defence and security cooperation is justified and important because Turkey is an important ally in NATO,” the spokeswoman added.

BAE Systems chief executive Ian King said the agreement confirmed the continued work on the aircraft’s design and development in an “exciting next step in relations between both Turkey and the UK with the cooperation between BAE Systems and TAI”.

UK’s BAE Systems to develop Turkish fighter jets was posted in World of TheNews International - https://www.thenews.com.pk on January 29, 2017 and was last updated on January 29, 2017. This news story is related to Print/182533-UKs-BAE-Systems-to-develop-Turkish-fighter-jets/ - breaking news, latest news, pakistan ne. Permanent link to the news story "UK’s BAE Systems to develop Turkish fighter jets" is https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/182533-UKs-BAE-Systems-to-develop-Turkish-fighter-jets.</s>Theresa May and her Turkish counterpart have announced a A 100 million-plus defence collaboration deal on the continued development of fighter jets for Turkey. The announcement comes during the Prime Minister's one-day visit to the Turkish capital Ankara, where she became the first Western leader to meet president Recep Tayyip Erdogan since last year's attempted coup.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Brentwoodweeklynews.co.uk.</s>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.

“I think those are separate issues; Turkey is an important Nato partner, so our cooperation on both security and defence is in line with that.”

She added: “The PM’s approach is quite clear: she thinks it is important and in the UK’s interests to engage with Turkey”.

Speaking alongside Erdogan in his vast office, May did take the opportunity to raise the issue of human rights, saying, “I’m proud that the UK stood with you on the 15 July last year in defence of democracy and now it is important that Turkey sustains that democracy by maintaining the rule of law and upholding its international human rights obligations as the government has undertaken to do”.

In his statement, Erdogan stressed the possibilities for boosting trade between the two nations, saying they had talked “extensively” about the jet deal and predator drones.

Asked about the crackdown that followed last year’s attempted coup against Erdoğan’s leadership, May’s spokeswoman said: “We have expressed strong support for Turkey’s democracy and institutions following the coup, but have also been very clear that we urge Turkey’s response to be proportionate and in line with international human rights obligations”.

May and Erdoğan appeared alongside each other at his lavish presidential palace on a hill overlooking Ankara.

The prime minister, who had earlier laid a wreath at the mausoleum of Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, said: “This agreement underlines once again that Britain is a great, global trading nation and that we are open for business.

“It marks the start of a new and deeper trading relationship with Turkey and will potentially secure British and Turkish jobs and prosperity for decades to come.”

Britain is keen to show it can strike lucrative trade deals as it prepares to exit the European Union, and the prime minister flew to Ankara straight from Washington, where she became the first foreign leader to visit Donald Trump in the White House.

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.

Britain currently trades with Turkey under its trade deal with the EU, which will no longer be valid when Britain leaves. The working group will be the 13th Britain has established to scope out potential agreements.

As well as signing the so-called “heads of agreement” for the jet deal, May and Erdoğan discussed security cooperation and counterterrorism.</s>BAE Systems and TAI (Turkish Aerospace Industries) yesterday signed a “Heads of Agreement” which will establish a partnership for the continued development of the ambitious TF-X fighter programme. The contract has the potential to lead to further multibillion pound contracts between the UK and Turkish firms over the lifetime of the project. Turkey, which is a key Nato member, has previously indicated that it only wants to deal with one defence partner – meaning the deal will help the UK defence industry push into new markets, an effort that has gained importance since Britain voted to leave the European Union.

The wider programme could see the UK win contracts to provide engines, weapons, radars and sensors. It is thought Turkey could buy around 250 TF-X aircraft and will underline the two countries trading links as Mrs May began informal talks about a free trade deal between Turkey and the UK when she made her first visit to the country yesterday, meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Speaking in Ankara the Prime Minister said: “This agreement underlines once again that Britain is a great, global, trading nation and that we are open for business.

“It marks the start of a new and deeper trading relationship with Turkey and will potentially secure British and Turkish jobs and prosperity for decades to come.” BAE Systems chief executive Ian King, added: “BAE Systems is a leader in designing, manufacturing and supporting fighter aircraft and is in an excellent position to contribute technical and engineering expertise and experience of managing complex projects to this key Turkish programme.“ The deal to develop the jet had been on hold after the attempted coup against President Erdogan in July and the sales come amid mounting concerns about the abuse of human rights.

Since July’s failed coup more than 125,000 people have been dismissed or suspended from their jobs and around 40,000 others arrested. Mrs May, who became the first western leader to meet with Mr Erdogan since the failed coup, was expected to raise the issue of alleged human rights abuses during her private meeting with the president yesterday. A Number 10 source said: “We have already expressed our strong support for Turkey’s democracy and institutions following the coup – but we have also been clear that we urge Turkey to ensure that their response is proportionate, justified and in line with international human rights obligations.</s>ANKARA, Jan 28 (Reuters) - Britain and Turkey signed a defence deal worth more than 100 million pounds ($125 million) on Saturday to develop Turkish fighter jets, opening the way to deeper cooperation over the lifetime of the project.

In Ankara to strengthen ties with Turkey as she navigates Britain's departure from the European Union, Prime Minister Theresa May hailed the deal, saying it showed "that Britain is a great, global, trading nation and that we are open for business".

The deal, announced by May and Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, involves BAE Systems and TAI (Turkish Aerospace Industries) working together to develop the TF-X Turkish fighter programme.

BAE Systems chief executive, Ian King, said the deal was the next step in deepening defence cooperation.

"It will also pave the way for a deeper defence partnership and could effectively make the UK Turkey's partner of choice, positioning it as a key aerospace technology exporter to Turkey," he said in a statement.

"The wider programme could see the UK win contracts to provide engines, weapons, radars and sensors." ($1 = 0.7971 pounds) (Reporting by Elizabeth Piper; Editing by David Dolan)</s>Theresa May has announced a £100m deal for the development of fighter jets for Turkey, following trade talks with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Speaking after discussions with Mr Erdogan in Ankara, Mrs May said Britain and Turkey will prepare the ground for a post-Brexit trade deal by setting up a joint working group.

It came as the UK-based BAE Systems and Turkish Aerospace Industries signed a Heads of Agreement document establishing a £100m partnership for the continued development of the Turkish Fighter Programme.

Mrs May said: We both want to build on our existing links and I believe that doing so will be to the benefit of both our countries and for the prosperity of both our nations.

What has underpinned our conversations has been the opportunity for Turkey and the UK to build on our existing relations, to our mutual benefit for the future.

Speaking alongside Mrs May at the presidential palace, Mr Erdogan said relations between Turkey and the UK would enjoy a very different nature and position.

He added his hope that annual trade between the two countries could be increased from $15.6bn (£12.4bn) to $20bn (£15.9bn).

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Talks between the pair came before a meeting between Mrs May and Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim.

Ahead of her arrival in Ankara, Mrs May had been under pressure to confront Mr Erdogan over human rights, as his crackdown on dissent following last summer’s failed coup has seen thousands of officials jailed and several media outlets closed.

The Turkish President said the pair discussed social issues, while Mrs May also made a brief reference to alleged human rights violations.

She said: I’m proud that the UK stood with (Mr Erdogan) on July 15 last year in defence of your democracy.

Now it is important Turkey sustains that democracy by maintaining the rule of law and upholding its international human rights obligations, as the government has undertaken to do.

Before being taken the presidential palace, Mrs May laid a wreath at the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk – the leader of the Turkish War of Independence and founder of the Republic of Turkey.

She signed her name in the visitors’ book and left a message which read: It is a great honour to visit this special place of remembrance to the founding father of modern Turkey.

Let us together renew our efforts to fulfil Ataturk’s vision of peace at home and peace in the world.
UK Prime Minister Theresa May and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan sign a £100 million defense deal to build new fighter jets. Under the deal, BAE Systems will collaborate with Turkish companies to build the TAI TFX.