US approves sale of F-16 parts to Taiwan for $108 million
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Taiwan’s Defence Ministry said the sale would boost the combat and defence needs of its air force.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON - The US State Department has approved the sale of F-16 fighter jet spare and repair parts to Taiwan for an estimated US$80 million (S$108 million), said the Pentagon’s Defence Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on June 5.
The sale will help “improve the security of the recipient and assist in maintaining political stability, military balance and economic progress in the region”, added the DSCA in a statement.
Taiwan’s Defence Ministry thanked the US and said the sale would boost the combat and defence needs of its air force.
The ministry said the sale would be finalised in July.
“With normalised grey-zone harassments, the Chinese Communist Party attempted to squeeze our naval and air training space and response time, as well as limiting our rights of self-defence,” it said in a statement.
China has repeatedly demanded that the US, Taiwan’s most important arms supplier, halt the sale of weapons to the island.
Beijing claims Taiwan as its own territory over Taipei’s strong objection.
China’s Defence Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Speaking to reporters in Parliament on June 6, Taiwanese Defence Minister Wellington Koo said Taiwan must boost its self-defence capabilities to be a part of “effective deterrence” in the US Indo-Pacific strategy.
“But for Taiwan-US military cooperation, there are many things we can only do, not tell,” he said. REUTERS
