The U.S. ambassador to Portugal has urged Lisbon to replace its ageing F-16 fighter jets with Lockheed Martin’s F-35, saying the stealth aircraft would ensure compatibility with Europe’s top-tier air forces.

Ambassador John Arrigo told CNN Portugal late on Sunday that he intended to draw on his business experience to help Portugal increase defence spending to NATO’s target of 5% of gross domestic product by 2035, up from the current 2%.

"F-35 is the best fighter - it's a fifth-generation stealth fighter, it'll get them (the Portuguese Air Force) into the Champions League when it comes to the EU," Arrigo said.

Portuguese Defence Minister Nuno Melo said in November that the selection process for the replacement fighters had not yet started. 

Arrigo said more than 900 F-35s were either in service or on order across Europe and that, for “interoperability, the F-35 is definitely the way to go.” He also noted that 25% of the aircraft is manufactured using European components.

On relations with China, the ambassador said the Trump administration was not pushing Portugal to choose between Washington and Beijing or to decouple from China. Instead, the U.S. was promoting “de-risking”, he said, through measures such as strengthening cybersecurity and tightening investment screening. 

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Chinese companies expanded in Portugal following the 2011–14 bailout, when lower asset prices attracted foreign investors.

Portugal secured a €78 billion bailout in May 2011 from the EU, IMF and ECB after soaring borrowing costs during the eurozone debt crisis cut it off from the markets. In return, it agreed to harsh austerity measures that triggered a deep recession.

Arrigo said the U.S. sees itself as Portugal's "best partner but wants to keep any adversary... at arm's length."

Portugal joined China's Belt and Road Initiative in December 2018. Arrigo said Lisbon's partnership with the U.S. would "flourish" if it were to exit the initiative, as Italy did in 2023.

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