Peru delays $2 billion F-16 deal, drawing US backlash

Marcelo Rochabrun and Carla Samon Ros, Bloomberg News on Apr 18, 2026

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The U.S. issued a veiled criticism against Peru after the Andean nation canceled a contract-signing ceremony for $2 billion worth of Lockheed Martin Corp. F-16 fighter jets.

U.S. ambassador to Peru Bernie Navarro said in a post on X that he’d use “every available tool” against those who “deal with the U.S. in bad faith and undermine U.S. interests,” after the signing, originally scheduled for Friday, was postponed.

Interim Peruvian President Jose Maria Balcazar announced he would postpone the fighter jet decision and hand over the responsibility to his successor, set to be inaugurated in July. Peru is in the middle of general elections with a runoff between conservative Keiko Fujimori and a yet-to-be-decided rival scheduled for June. Authorities are still counting ballots following a tumultuous Sunday vote.

“We would leave an issue of this great magnitude to the new government,” Balcazar said in an interview with Exitosa on Friday. “A decision on this matter is very important and implies a great deal of debt for the country.”

Peru has publicly announced its plans to buy new fighter jets, with Lockheed Martin, Sweden’s Saab AB and France’s Dassault Aviation SA expressing interest. Balcazar’s interim administration had hinted before that a deal was likely with the Americans, although the postponement may suggest that other companies may now stand a chance to win the contract.

Balcazar responded to Navarro’s X post on Friday evening.

The remarks “are written in a way that isn’t adequate or respectful,” Balcazar said in a separate interview with RPP radio. “Maybe he’s misinformed because I am not in any way coming out against the purchase; the only thing I’m saying is to delay it, and there’s no danger in that.”

The tensions come as Peru and the U.S. have gotten closer in defense matters in recent months, while Navarro has also criticized the South American nation’s closeness with China. The Trump administration designated Peru as a major non-NATO ally, and Peru is considering contracting the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to build a new main naval base in the city of Callao, just north of Lima.

The canceled ceremony was first reported by local news outlets including La Republica and Peru21 and confirmed to Bloomberg by a person familiar with the matter. The person said the deal totaled $2 billion and included a dozen F-16 jets.

Peru’s defense ministry, which oversees the purchase of the fighter jets, declined to comment about the planned ceremony. Lockheed Martin did not respond to a request for comment sent after business hours.

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(With assistance from Siddharth Philip.)