April 08, 2015
Forget F-16s for Taiwan: It's All About A2/AD
The time has come for the United States to consider ending the sale of upgrades for F-16 fighter aircraft to Taiwan and instead shift military sales and cooperation to emphasize anti-access capabilities and concepts of operation.
U.S. policy toward Taiwan has always been a delicate dance. The United States supports a “one China” policy and it maintains a strategic relationship with Beijing, but Washington is legislatively required to support Taiwan’s “sufficient self-defense capabilities” thanks to the Taiwan Relations Act. A certain amount of diplomatic savvy is required to simultaneously pursue such seemingly contradictory policies.
Against this backdrop, decisions relating to F-16 sales have become a leading indicator of U.S. intentions vis-à-vis Beijing and Taipei. If the United States sells new F-16s to Taiwan, Beijing may perceive it as a threat to the Sino-U.S. strategic relationship and the PRC’s position in the region. If the United States refuses to arm Taiwan at all, it would not only be found in violation of the Taiwan Relations Act, but Taiwan would then be forced to make the grand strategic assumption that it no longer has U.S. support. The Obama administration has continued the delicate dance of its predecessors, offering an interim solution of not shipping F-16s to Taiwan but instead offering to help modernize Taiwan’s existing fleet.
Read the full article at The Diplomat.
More from CNAS
-
CNAS Insights | Eight Things to Watch for in 2026
Commentary
Buckle up for a pivotal geopolitical year. In 2026, the world will struggle to make sense of U.S. actions and intentions, and Washington will remain uncertain about its own pl...
By Richard Fontaine
-
North Korea Reveals Troop Dispatch to Russia amid U.S.-South Korea Policy Talks
Video
North Korea has confirmed for the first time that its troops are operating in Russia, and it is preparing to rewrite its party charter with the possibility of officially namin...
By Dr. Go Myong-Hyun
-
Chinese Maker of Bitcoin-Mining Machines Is a Security Threat, Says Expert
Video
Bloomberg News reports that a Chinese manufacturer, Bitmain Technologies Ltd, that sells most of the world’s Bitcoin-mining machines — including 16,000 of them to a venture ba...
By David Feith
-
Commentary
Defense / Transatlantic Security
When Defense Becomes Destruction: Austria-Hungary’s Mistake and Ukraine’s RiskThis article was originally posted on War on the Rocks. The southeastern Polish city of Przemyśl, with its elegant 19th century Habsburg-era train station, remains one of the ...
By Franz-Stefan Gady
