Politics

US congressmen urge Obama to sell Taiwan F-16s

• Publication Date：05/17/2010
• Source： United Daily News

A total of 136 members of the U.S. House of Representatives May 12 urged U.S. President Barack Obama to approve arms sales of 66 F-16 C/D jet fighters to Taiwan as soon as possible.

The jetfighters are necessary if Taiwan is to withstand possible attacks from mainland China, the representatives wrote in a joint letter.

Initiated by Congress members Shelley Berkley, Gerald Connolly, Phil Gingrey and Lincoln Diaz-Balart, the co-chairpersons of the Taiwan Caucus, a congressional group friendly to Taiwan, the letter praised the Obama administration’s recent decision to make US$6.4 billion in weapons, including the Patriot Advanced Capability 3 system, available to Taiwan.

But the congressmen also expressed disappointment that the U.S. government still has not agreed to sell Taiwan the 66 F-16 C/D jets it has requested since 2006.

The letter cited the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency assessment report released in January, noting that Taiwan’s air defense capabilities have been declining due to aging of its fighters.

As the F-16 production line may shut down in two to three years, approving the sale of the aircraft to Taiwan has become more urgent than ever.

The congressmen said it was time for the Obama administration to fulfill the U.S. government promise to provide Taiwan with sufficient weapons to defend itself from an attack by mainland China.

Though the letter carries enormous weight, it is unlikely that it will have an immediate effect, said Legislator Lin Yu-fang, who is also chairman of the Taiwan-USA Inter-Parliamentary Amity Association.

“Tension has built up in the Korean Peninsula. Meanwhile, Taipei and Beijing are about to sign the proposed economic cooperation framework agreement,” Lin noted.

“These circumstances make it unlikely that the U.S. will announce the sale of the F-16s in the next few months,” he said. (KP-HZW)