US Senate defeats bid to stop F-16 fighter jet sale to Turkey

FILE PHOTO: An F-16 combat jet aircraft of the Turkish airforce takes off at the Air Defender Exercise 2023 at the military airport of Jagel, northern Germany, June 9, 2023. Axel Heimken/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Senate on Thursday soundly defeated an effort to stop the $23 billion sale of F-16 fighter jets and modernization kits to Turkey, which President Joe Biden's administration approved after Turkey approved Sweden's joining the NATO alliance.

The Senate voted 79 to 13 against a resolution of disapproval of the sale introduced by Republican Senator Rand Paul.