[By Guancha Observer Wang Shihua] According to a report by Reuters on April 2, the U.S. Department of State has notified Congress of its potential sale of Lockheed Martin F-16 fighter jets to the Philippines for a total value of $558 million. Reuters said that this move is expected to strengthen the strategic partnership between the United States and this key Southeast Asian ally.

On April 1, the U.S. Department of Defense stated in a press release: "The Department of State has decided to approve the sale of F-16 aircraft to the armed forces of the Philippine government, with an estimated total value of $558 million."

The approval of military sales by the U.S. Department of State is not a military contract, and there have been precedents where the U.S. Department of State approved sales but allied countries did not purchase them. However, Reuters reported that the Philippine government indeed intends to purchase 16 single-seat F-16C (Block 70/72) fighters and 4 twin-seat F-16D (Block 70/72) fighters. Additionally, the Philippines plans to procure 24 F110-GE-129D and F100-PW-229 engines (including 4 spare engines), radar, computer equipment, navigation systems, missile launchers, missiles and bombs used by F-16 fighters, electronic warfare equipment, and other equipment, as well as training and support services.

F-16V fighters of the Bahrain Air Force on social media

In recent years, the Philippines has been hoping to procure new fighter jets because it currently only has FA-50 fighter trainers and no modern jet fighters.

Last July 4, Philippine Armed Forces Chief of Staff Major General Romeo Brawner Jr. announced at Aginale that they would procure new fighter jets. Brawner emphasized the current state of the Philippine Air Force, pointing out that the fleet consisting of FA-50 trainer fighters made in South Korea had many shortcomings, and that these fighters were "far from sufficient" to protect the country. He indicated that the Philippines was considering purchasing more advanced and combat-capable fighter jets.

In 2023, the Philippine Air Force commander visited Sweden to discuss the procurement of JAS-39 "Gripen" fighters. However, no contracts have been signed between the two countries yet.

F-16C/D Block 70/72 is the latest improved model of Lockheed Martin's F-16 fighter jets, which Lockheed Martin calls the F-16V. The biggest improvement of the F-16C/D Block 70/72 is the installation of the APG-83 active electronically scanned array radar and the addition of the distinctive conformal electronic warfare system on the fuselage, giving it excellent multi-target tracking capability and electronic warfare capability, while being compatible with AIM-120C8 and AIM-9X air-to-air missiles, AGM-154C Joint Standoff Weapon systems, and other advanced munitions. However, the precision munitions approved for sale to the Philippines by the United States are only the GBU-39/B "Small Diameter Bomb" and the GBU-54 "Joint Direct Attack Munition."

In 2017, the United States approved the sale of 22 F-16V fighters to Bahrain and upgraded Bahrain's existing 20 F-16 fighters to the F-16V level. The total amount of this deal was $3.86 billion. In 2019, the Taiwanese Air Force budgeted under the "Phoenix Soaring Project" special budget to plan to purchase 56 single-seat and 10 twin-seat F16V fighters from the United States. The total budget for this arms purchase was approximately NT$390 billion (approximately RMB 85 billion).

Recently, the United States has continued to visit the Philippines, attempting to cause trouble in the South China Sea region. On March 28, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin visited the Philippines and reaffirmed the United States' firm commitment to the Mutual Defense Treaty with the Philippines during his meeting with Philippine President Marcos.

Austin stated that given the threat from China, deterrence is necessary worldwide, but particularly so in the Philippines. He emphasized that the two countries must "stand together" to jointly respond to the threat from China.

This article is an exclusive contribution from the Guancha Observer and cannot be reprinted without permission.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7488615661033488959/

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