US Rep. Joe Wilson Urges Israel to Halt Syria Airstrikes
"I'm really grateful the president's envoy, Tom Barrack, has expressed opposition to the Israeli airstrikes, and it just shouldn't be done," said Rep. Joe Wilson, a Republican from South Carolina.
Pressed on whether he was directly calling on Israel's government to halt the strikes, Wilson answered without hesitation: "Absolutely."
"I appreciate the leadership of President Donald Trump, at the request of Türkiye, at the request of Saudi Arabia, to give Syria a chance. And Syria will succeed, and then it's beneficial to every country in the Middle East," he told media.
Wilson also framed the "liberation of Syria" — a reference to the collapse of Bashar al-Assad's regime in late 2024 — as a development with ripple effects for other regional players, including Iran and Lebanon.
Barrack, the US special envoy for Syria who doubles as ambassador to Türkiye, said in August that Washington was "deeply concerned" over Israeli strikes on the Abu al-Duhur Airbase in northern Syria, branding them an "unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability."
Wilson backs Türkiye's return to F-35 program
Wilson, who co-chairs the Congressional Caucus on US-Türkiye Relations and Turkish Americans, also emphasized the long history binding Washington and Ankara, tracing their cooperation back to the Korean War.
"I'm very grateful that Türkiye led the effort for the liberation of Syria, and Syria now having an opportunity of stability, peace and prosperity, it's going to benefit all of the Middle East, but particularly Türkiye," he said.
Asked about efforts by Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to resolve the standoff over Türkiye's purchase of Russia's S-400 air defense system — and Ankara's possible reinstatement into the F-35 fighter jet program — Wilson said he remained "hopeful."
He voiced support for Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth working directly with Türkiye, arguing that closer cooperation between the two capitals would advance "peace through strength."
Asked point-blank whether he backs selling F-35 jets to Türkiye, Wilson replied: "I do. Yes, I do." He also endorsed lifting sanctions imposed on Türkiye under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, or CAATSA.
"But the bottom line, let's go back: Türkiye is a great ally of America, America is an ally of Türkiye, and we want mutual benefit," he said.
Washington suspended Türkiye from the F-35 program in 2019 after objecting to its S-400 purchase, arguing the Russian system would compromise the jets' security and is incompatible with NATO infrastructure. Türkiye has consistently denied any such conflict and has proposed forming a joint commission to examine the issue. Several Turkish defense firms were separately sanctioned under CAATSA.
During a July meeting with Erdoğan in Türkiye on the sidelines of the NATO summit, Trump said he would "certainly" consider allowing Ankara to purchase F-35s and expressed interest in lifting the CAATSA sanctions.
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