The United States is considering selling its Lockheed Martin Corp-made F-35 fighter jets to five new countries, including Greece, Romania, and Poland as European allies bulk up their defences in the face of a strengthening Russia, a Pentagon official told Congress on Thursday.

In written testimony submitted to the U.S. House of Representatives and seen by Reuters, Vice Admiral Mathias Winter – the head of the Pentagon’s F-35 office – said that “future potential Foreign Military Sales customers include Singapore, Greece, Romania, Spain, and Poland.”

News of the new customers coincides with U.S. tension with F-35 development partner Turkey over Ankara’s plans to buy a Russian missile defence system.

On Monday, 1st of April, US officials announced they had suspended delivery of F-35 fighter jet parts to Turkey in retaliation for Ankara’s decision to move ahead with the purchase of a Russian surface-to-air missile system.

source: reuters