The House adopted language in the Fiscal 2013 defense authorization bill that would require the White House to sell Taiwan at least 66 new-build F-16s to help modernize its air force. “The President shall carry out the sale of no fewer than 66 F 16C/D multirole fighter aircraft to Taiwan,” states the provision, an amendment that Rep. Kay Granger (R-Tex.) introduced and the House approved as part of a block of bill add-ons on May 17. “This sale will ensure our key strategic ally in the Pacific has the defense capacity to defend its own airspace and their nation,” said Granger in a May 18 release. Lockheed Martin assembles the F-16 in Granger’s district. Taiwan last year secured US assistance in upgrading its 145 F-16A/Bs with new radar and weapons, but some members of Congress have expressed concern that the Obama Administration was not going far enough to support Taiwan. (See also China Visit.)
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth vowed to undertake far-reaching reforms on the way the U.S. military buys weapons, promising a sweeping overhaul of the way the Defense Department determines requirements, handles the acquisition process, and tests its kit. The fundamental goal, which Hegseth underscored in a 1-hour and 10-minute speech…
