Prime Minister gets flak after signing £100m warplane deal with Turkey’s brutal Islamist president Erdogan
Prime Minister controversially met with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan today
THERESA May sparked furore yesterday by signing a deal to build military jets with Turkey's brutal boss.
The PM drew flak for becoming the first Western leader to visit President Recep Tayyip Erdogan since his bloody coup clampdown in July last year.
But she fought back to insist it was also "vital" to hold security talks with the Turkish regime about fighting ISIS, as well as map out another post-Brexit trade deal.
Mrs May copped a bitter backlash from campaigners as other major leaders have stayed away from Ankara after Erdogan jailed tens of thousands - including journalists and teachers - to avenge the plot to oust him.
Sharing a stage with the all-powerful Turkey boss yesterday at his Presidential Palace, Theresa May issued a public challenge on his grim record.
As Mr Erdogan looked on stony-faced, the PM told him: "I'm proud that the UK stood with you on the 15 July last year in defence of democracy.
“Now it is important that Turkey sustains that democracy by maintaining the rule of law and upholding its international human rights obligations as the government has undertaken to do."
But an hour later, the PM then signed a £100m deal for British company BAE Systems to help build a new generation of 250 TFX Turkish fighter jets.
The 20 year-long agreement will unlock a raft of more work worth potentially billions and create hundreds of jobs, No10 argued.
Mrs May said the deal “underlines once again that Britain is a great, global, trading nation and that we are open for business”.
During a later press conference with Turkey’s prime minister Binali Yildirim, Mrs May also revealed she had agreed a new security partnership with him.
The PM dubbed the UK’s links with Turkey as “vital”, adding: “Turkey sits on the frontline of some of the most serious challenges we face”.
Amnesty International said Erdogan has locked up more than 40,000 since the faild coup, and more than 90,000 civil servants have been summarily suspended or sacked.
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The charity’s UK Director Kate Allen said: “Mrs May should call for journalists held in pre-trial detention in Turkey to be released, for an end to torture in detention and for due process and the rule of law in Turkey to prevail.”
Lib Dem leader Tim Farron lashed out at Mrs May last night for doing deals “with ever-more unsavoury leaders”.
He added: "There are tens of thousands of people in Turkish jails without fair trial who in many cases have committed no crime, other than daring to disagree with President Erdogan.
“Theresa May should address this as a priority."
Mrs May was greeted by Mr Yildirim with a military band playing the national anthems of both countries.
As part of the ceremony, Mrs May addressed the guard of honour in Turkish, saying "Merhaba Asker" - "Hello soldiers" - to which they bellowed the reply "Sagol", or "thankyou".
Earlier on her day-log visit to the Turksh capital, the PM laid a wreath at the tomb of Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the modern Turkish republic.
Dressed in sombre black, the Mrs May then signed her name in the visitors' book, describing the act or remembrance as “a great honour”.