The sale of $428 million worth of aircraft parts to Taiwan has been approved by the U.S. State Department. This will aid Taiwan’s air force, which is under stress from repeatedly intercepting Chinese jets flying close to the island.
The Chinese air force is vastly larger than Taiwan’s, which is well-equipped but ageing. Beijing considers the island, which is democratically run, to be its territory, and for the past three years or so, it has been conducting daily sorties close to Taiwan.
The median line of the Taiwan Strait, which had served as an informal boundary, has been routinely crossed by China’s air force since early August, when war games were staged by China around Taiwan following Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei.
The parts would support Taiwan’s F-16s, Indigenous Defence Fighter jets, and all other aircraft and systems or subsystems of American origin, the Pentagon said in two statements late on Tuesday.
According to the statement, ‘the proposed sale will support the recipient’s aerial fleet, strengthening its capacity to counter present and potential threats while supplying defensive and transport capabilities essential to regional security.’
On Wednesday, the Taiwanese Ministry of Defense announced that the sale would ‘take effect’ in a month and expressed gratitude.
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