On Thursday, Taiwan Defence Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng said supply chain difficulties had delayed the arrival of 66 sophisticated modern F-16Vs from the U.S. Still, the ministry was striving to minimize damage and “make up deficiencies.”
In 2019, the U.S. approved a $8 billion sale of Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) F-16 fighter jets to Taiwan, boosting the island’s F-16 fleet to over 200 jets, the largest in Asia, to defend against China, which claims Taiwan as its own.
Taiwan has converted 141 F-16A/B planes into F-16Vs and bought 66 additional F-16Vs with upgraded avionics, missiles, and radar systems to combat the Chinese air force, especially the J-20 stealth fighter.
The ministry claimed pandemic-related supply chain delays delayed the first F-16V delivery from this year to the next.
Chiu told legislative reporters that Taiwan had urged the U.S. to “make up the deficiency” by prioritizing fleet spare component delivery.
“Multiple channels are being used, and we are minimising the damage from this,” he added, adding they still anticipated delivering the complete order by 2026.
Chiu said the ministry is working with Taipei’s de facto U.S. embassy to settle the issue.
The de facto embassy, American Institute in Taiwan, and Lockheed Martin did not reply to requests for comment.
Since last year, Taiwan has complained about delays in U.S. weapons delivery, including Stinger anti-aircraft missiles, as producers provide Ukraine while it fights Russian forces. U.S. politicians are concerned.
Last month in Taipei, U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Michael McCaul indicated he was doing all necessary to speed up military delivery.
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