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Turkey Spends $2.4M on Trump Allies to Rejoin F-35 Program

Turkey has hired Republican lobbying firm Ballard Partners for $2.4 million to help rejoin the F-35 program after its 2019 expulsion over purchasing Russia's S-400 missile system.

Eleni Papadaki-Van Der Merwe Staff Writer

AUGUST 28, 2026 AT 10:49 PM

The one-year contract with Ballard Partners, signed on August 8 and valued at $200,000 per month, was revealed in filings submitted to the U.S. Department of Justice. The deal represents Ankara’s latest effort to reverse its 2019 expulsion from the advanced fighter program.

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Ballard Partners is led by Brian Ballard, a Florida Republican megadonor and close ally of President Donald Trump. The firm boasts significant connections to the current administration, with former White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and former U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi both having served on its roster.

Turkey’s Ministry of National Defense is named as the client in the arrangement. Washington ejected Ankara from the F-35 program six years ago after Turkey procured Russia’s S-400 air defense system, which U.S. officials deemed incompatible with the security standards of the NATO-led fighter initiative.

Former Trump Official Among Lobbyists

The lobbying team assigned to Turkey’s account includes Thomas Boudreaux, who until April 2025 served as a special assistant to President Trump and senior director for legislative affairs at the National Security Council, as Greek City Times reports.

Boudreaux departed the administration during a personnel overhaul that followed the exit of then-National Security Advisor Mike Waltz. His removal was reportedly connected to pressure from far-right activist Laura Loomer, who had flagged concerns to Trump about officials she viewed as insufficiently loyal.

Also working on the Turkish contract is former Democratic Florida Congressman Robert Wexler, a long-standing advocate for strengthened U.S.-Turkey relations. Wexler helped found the Congressional Caucus on U.S.-Turkey Relations in 2001 and now leads the S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace in Washington.

Second Contract With Same Firm

This is not Turkey’s first engagement with Ballard Partners. During President Trump’s first term in 2017, Ankara reportedly retained the firm under a $1.5 million contract. That earlier lobbying effort was tied to efforts surrounding federal charges against Turkey’s state-owned Halkbank.

The Trump administration’s Justice Department dismissed the Halkbank charges earlier this year.

The new lobbying contract underscores Ankara’s determination to resolve the F-35 standoff and restore its defense ties with Washington, despite the ongoing controversy over its purchase of Russian military hardware.

With information from Greek City Times

Eleni Papadaki-Van Der Merwe

She was born in 1986 in Johannesburg, South Africa. She is the granddaughter of an immigrant from Crete who settled in the Greek community of Johannesburg (one of the largest in Africa). She holds a bachelor’s degree in International Relations and Political Science from the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in Johannesburg and a master’s degree in Journalism from Rhodes University in Grahamstown. She began her career at English-language media outlets in Johannesburg, covering politics and economics, with a focus on issues related to migration and the diaspora. She moved to Athens in 2015 to “return to her roots,” initially to pursue graduate studies, and has remained there permanently. She is married to an Afrikaner; they have two children and live in the southern suburbs of Athens.

Former Trump Official Among Lobbyists