Taiwan Weighs Defense Budget Cuts
Written by Jens Kastner
MONDAY, 20 FEBRUARY 2012
Air defense system could fall further behind China's
The Taiwanese government says it may downsize its commitment to upgrading its aging F-16 fighter jets, cutting expenditures by nearly 40 percent, with the result that the island’s air defense system looks likely to fall further behind China’s People’s Liberation Army.
In August the Obama government refused Taiwan’s request for 66 new-generation Lockheed Martin F-16C/D jet fighters to replace other elderly planes for fear of inflaming tensions between the US and China. The US then asked the Kuomintang government to spend US$5.1 billion to upgrade the aging planes.
The package offered as consolation was comprised of advanced radars, pinpoint bomb guidance systems and a feasibility study for new engines, among other punchy items. Local media however, is speculating that Taipei will refit only some aircraft, doesn't want to replace the aircrafts' engines and even wants to scrap the smart bombs.
“If the Ma government remains committed to underfunding the F-16A/B upgrade program, it runs the risk of undermining the seriousness of their commitment to buy new F-16C/Ds” said Rupert Hammond-Chambers, the president of the US-Taiwan Business Council, an NGO that acts as a go-between between Taipei, Washington and the US defense industry. He indirectly confirmed the Taiwanese decision to not buy the new engines, but pointed out that it's what's the government wants, not the Taiwanese military.
“It is mostly a financial decision. The Taiwan Air Force would like it, but the money just isn't there at this time.”
James Holmes of the US Naval War College says Taipei should shift its focus from air force and army to the navy anyway.
“I hope Taiwan will develop capabilities that deter China while sidestepping areas where the island's armed forces can no longer compete, such as undersea warfare and, increasingly, surface and air-to-air combat,” Holmes said.
