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Ma renews call for F-16C/D fighter sale

ROC Central News Agency

2011/09/30 17:36:22

By Kelven Huang and Deborah Kuo

Taipei, Sept. 30 (CNA) President Ma Ying-jeou renewed calls Friday for the United States to sell advanced F-16C/D fighters and diesel submarines to Taiwan because of their importance to securing the country's security.

In a meeting with U.S. Congressman Hank Johnson (D-GA) at the Presidential Office, Ma reiterated that Taiwan has long hoped to purchase F-16C/D fighters to replace its fleet of aging F-5E jet fighters to maintain its Air Force's combat capability.

Washington announced on Sept. 21 that it intended to sell Taiwan a retrofit of 145 of Taiwan's F-16 A/B fighter jets, but the package did not include the more advanced F-16C/D fighters the country had hoped for.

Ma said the failure to include the F-16C/D fighters did not mean, however, that the U.S. had rejected Taiwan's plan to acquire them.

"I'm glad that (the U.S.) is still seriously considering it," Ma said during the conversation with Johnson and his two aides.

The Sept. 21 package, worth US$5.85 billion, includes a retrofit of 145 of Taiwan's F-16 A/B fighter jets, a five-year extension of F-16 pilot training at Luke Air Force Base in the U.S. and spare parts for maintenance of Taiwan's F-16s, its existing fleet of F-5s, and C-130 cargo planes.

Ma said the package was the third round of U.S. arms sales to Taiwan since he took office in May 2008.

The three arms sales packages, worth about US$18.3 billion in total, were the biggest arms purchases Taiwan had made from the United States over the decades, he added.

Ma also reiterated that U.S.-Taiwan military cooperation was not aimed at boosting Taiwan's capability to "attack" but at strengthening its self-defense.

He told Johnson and his aides that Taiwan would continue to push for rapprochement with mainland China for the sake of peace across the Taiwan Strait, but at the same time would continue to put a priority on its military capability to defend itself.

"Peace can be possible only when strength is secured," he said.

During the meeting, the president also expressed the hope that Taiwan will become a candidate nation for the U.S.' visa waiver program this year so that its citizens could visit the United States without the need for a visa in the not-too-distant future.

Congressman Johnson and his two aides arrived in Taiwan Thursday for a four-day visit.