The fact that the US-Greece relationship is at an all-time high it is not accidental, but is the result of an effort on the part of both the Greek government and Washington, he emphasized according to ERT, the US Assistant Secretary of State Joshua Hack in a briefing held in Washington, ahead of the US-Greece Strategic Dialogue that will take place on Friday at the State Department.

“Greece is not just a stable partner, but a country that promotes stability in the region” added the American official and referred to the overall constructive role of our country and the initiatives it undertakes in the wider region.

Answering a question for the long delay in unlocking the sale of F-35s to Athens and about the American strategy of connecting them with F-16s to Turkey, he commented that “We all wish things had progressed faster, but these are complex deals and we are satisfied where we are today.”

For its essence sale of the fifth generation fighters in Greece said that “it is a positive development for Greece in terms of its capabilities, but it is also a positive development for US-Greece defense cooperation and for NATO as it increases the alliance’s overall defense readiness and capabilities. But there is not only support for Greece in the air, but there is support at sea and on land. So we’re not just talking about strengthening Greece’s air power, we’re talking about a broader plan to modernize Greek defense capabilities, which is part of an already very strong defense relationship.”

In a question about the F-16 and what makes the US think that Turkey will not use them some point against Greecehe saidwe are satisfied with the improvement of relations between Greece and Turkey. Of course, the two governments are the ones who know how this relationship will develop, but from our side this is a process that we support. The positive developments of the last few months to overcome long-standing disagreements and to seek a new approach are due to the leadership role and vision of Mr. Mitsotakis and Mr. Erdogan”.

Asked what the US will do if this climate changes and Turkey resumes its aggression against Greece, Mr. Haq said “that’s a classic hypothetical situation, which I won’t comment on, I don’t have much to say therefore I prefer to focus on the positive data that exist at the moment”.

In in relation to the letter of assurances sent by the State Department to Congress and when asked why this secrecy exists he said “I’m not going to comment or to speculate on internal communications of the US governmentthe communications that one part of the government may or may not have with another part of the government, I can’t really go there.”

Meanwhile, a representative of the State Department had previously stated that F-35s could also be given to Turkey if it decides to abandon the S-400 systems. He characteristically said “our position on the S-400 systems has not changed: they are incompatible with NATO equipment, threaten the security of NATO technology and are inconsistent with Turkey’s commitments as a NATO ally. We call on Turkey not to maintain the system. If and when we resolve the S-400 issue, the United States would welcome a discussion with Turkey on the F-35 program, but I have no new announcements to make.”