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進入《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》Military clarifies fighter desires after news report
Staff writer, with CNA
Taiwan is hoping to acquire advanced fighters from the US, preferably the F-35 stealth jet, but upgraded F-16C/D jets would also be an option, a Ministry of National Defense official said yesterday.
Ministry spokesman Major General David Lo （羅紹和） said the nation’s air force is ideally looking for aircraft with short takeoff and vertical-landing capabilities, and acknowledged that “it is our goal to acquire F-35s.”
He admitted that it would be nearly impossible to obtain the fighters in the short term, “but we will continue to make an effort on this issue.”
Lo was responding to a report that Taiwan wanted the F-35 stealth jet and a separate report that it would not buy F-16C/Ds.
The Chinese-language China Times reported on Monday that the nation’s air force has decided not to pursue the purchase of F-16C/Ds, citing a senior military official.
The official was quoted by the China Times as saying that there was no need for F-16C/Ds, as the upgrade of Taiwan’s F-16A/B fleet and its indigenous defense fighters （IDFs） would fulfill the nation’s defense needs.
The air force is retrofitting its F-16A/Bs with the US’ help and is upgrading all IDFs, which it hopes will enable the country to maintain a sufficient air defense over the next 20 years.
Lo said yesterday that the functions of the upgraded F-16A/Bs could almost match those of F-16C/Ds, and the nation is seeking to obtain warplanes for the future that are better than either.
Though the F-35 is the military’s primary — if unlikely — target, Lo said upgraded F-16C/Ds could also be an option.
“We did not say that we will not procure F-16C/Ds,” Lo said.
Taiwan has long lobbied Washington to sell it advanced fighter jets, but US President Barack Obama’s administration decided in 2011 to offer a retrofit package for the nation’s aging F-16A/B fleet rather than new F-16C/Ds.
Since then, the nation has been reassessing its need for the fighter jets, because some of the functions of the upgraded F-16A/B exceeded those of the F-16C/D.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
