Europe
Rubio in Lisbon: “Portugal should buy the F-35”, Rangel says no decision has been made
At a joint press conference in Lisbon on October 8, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio openly urged Portugal to pick the F-35 to replace its F-16s. Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel replied that the decision has not been taken and will rest on the national interest.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio openly asked Portugal to choose the F-35 to replace its F-16 fleet. “We think they should buy the F-35 because we think it’s the best fighter jet in the world,” he said at the joint press conference with his Portuguese counterpart Paulo Rangel in Lisbon on Thursday, October 8, according to the transcript published by the State Department.
Rubio arrived in Lisbon from Athens, where defence and energy were at the centre of the talks. In Portugal he met first the prime minister and then Rangel. It was, he said, his first visit to the country, which will sit on the UN Security Council in 2027–2028.
“A fair chance”
The US secretary of state stressed that the choice belongs to the Portuguese government and to the elected representatives of its people. “All we ask is a fair chance, and I think we’ll get one, to make a presentation and a proposal that will be very competitive with every other plane that is offered on the table,” he said, adding: “Obviously, I’m not here to promote the airplanes made by some other country.” He also pointed to interoperability, since the F-35 is “the same system we use”.
In his opening remarks Rubio had recalled that the two countries “together built” Portugal’s F-16 fleet, which in his words also strengthened NATO. The question from a Portuguese journalist raised the issue of competition from European fighters directly, and the reports that the Portuguese Air Force prefers the F-35.
Rangel’s answer
“The decision hasn’t been taken, and it’s not the foreign minister that will take that decision,” Rangel replied, speaking through an interpreter. He explained that it is a collective decision of the government, with a large part played by the defence minister, and that the criterion will be “the national interest”. “We are looking at the United States’ proposal regarding the F-35. We are looking at it in a serious fashion like we look at others,” he said.
The Portuguese minister said the country’s defence spending reached 2% of GDP in 2025, up from 1.6%, and that Lisbon will follow NATO’s target of 5% in the medium term, with 3.5% for defence and 1.5% for related investment. He also recalled the US presence at Lajes air base in the Azores. In Europe the F-35 is gaining ground, with Finland recently presenting its first F-35As, while European governments increasingly discuss strengthening their own defence industry.