It’s becoming increasingly clear that the Obama administration, fearing another rupture in its hard-earned progress in restoring military ties with China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA), is hesitant to address the growing gap in air power capabilities in the Taiwan Straits. It’s being reported that the administration has tried to thwart public awareness of its refusal to sell F-16 C/Ds by exerting pressure on Taiwan to refrain from requesting a sale altogether.
Meanwhile, the Obama administration remains ambiguous about upgrading Taiwan’s existing fleet of F-16 A/Bs. Even without the deployment of a carrier-based air wing or a new fifth-generation stealth fighter, the quantity and quality improvements in the capabilities of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) are thought to already be sufficient to achieve air superiority during a Taiwan contingency. Recognizing the tide may have already turned in favour of the PLAAF with it having achieved air superiority, military analysts and sympathetic legislators are now pushing to increase pressure on the administration to live up to the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA) by providing Taiwan with better equipment.
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