WASHINGTON—The Obama administration has formally notified Congress that it plans to upgrade Taiwan's existing fleet of F-16 fighter jets, infuriating U.S. lawmakers who prefer to sell new fighters to Taiwan and drawing a protest from Beijing.
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency, which oversees foreign military sales, said it told Congress of plans to retrofit Taiwan's F-16s and equip them with an advanced radar system.
In a Sept. 2007 photo, a fleet of F-16 fly over Taipei's Sungshan airport during an air show for the 70th anniversary of Taiwan air force.
The proposed arms sale, the agency said, would support Taiwan's "continuing efforts to modernize its armed forces and enhance its defensive capability."
The decision was announced Wednesday in a statement on the agency's website. Administration officials held a classified briefing for key lawmakers last week, before the decision was official.
The notification sets in motion a deal worth a potential $5.3 billion to upgrade 145 Taiwanese F-16 A/B jets. The package also includes an array of weaponry, including Joint Direct Attack Munition smart bomb kits, targeting systems and air-to-air missiles.
Separately, the agency notified Congress of a proposal to train Taiwanese fighter pilots in the U.S., a package worth a potential $500 million.
The announcement follows weeks of speculation that the Obama administration would propose such an upgrade package for Taiwan's air force, instead of selling brand-new F-16 C/D aircraft originally sought by Taipei.
A senior administration official speaking with reporters held open the possibility of new aircraft sales at an unspecified later date.
"No decisions have been made on selling new F-16 C/D aircraft at this time," the official said. "It is still in consideration and we are aware of Taiwan's requests in this regard."
The retrofit package, the official added, "will provide a substantial increase in the survivability, the reliability and the combat capabilities and effectiveness of Taiwan's 145 F-16 As and Bs."
U.S. lawmakers have expressed concern that the upgrade package would not be adequate for modernizing Taiwan's air defenses and fear that the military balance across the Taiwan Straits has tipped too far in China's favor.
In a statement, Sen. John Cornyn (R., Texas), called the proposed arms sale a "capitulation" to Beijing.
"Taiwan must have the tools to defend itself against potential Chinese aggression, and this decision not to sell Taiwan new F-16C/Ds represents a failure by the administration to live up to its obligations under the Taiwan Relations Act," he said.
Sens. Cornyn and Robert Menendez (D., N.J.) recently introduced a bill that would require the Obama administration to sell Taiwan 66 new F-16C/D multi-role fighter jets, which are made by Lockheed Martin Corp. On Wednesday, Rep. Kay Granger (R., Texas) introduced matching legislation in the House.
Rupert Hammond-Chambers, president of the U.S.-Taiwan Business Council, said in a statement the upgrade program could lead to a shortfall in Taiwan's fighter strength.
"The upgrade program is comprehensive, but spans almost 10 years with the first upgraded A/B coming as late as the 6th year of the program," he said. "If the Obama Administration were to accept a letter of request for 66 F-16 C/Ds now, the entire tranche of new fighters could be delivered before Taiwan receives any of its upgraded F-16 A/Bs."
U.S. arms sales to Taiwan are a sensitive point in U.S.-China relations, but several Chinese experts on Taiwan and China-U.S. relations have predicted that Beijing's response will be more measured than last year, when another U.S. arms package for Taiwan prompted it to cut off military dialogue with Washington for 12 months.
China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website that Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun had summoned the new U.S. ambassador to China, Gary Locke, to lodge a "strong" formal protest after the announcement. The Chinese Ambassador to the U.S., Zhang Yesui, made a similar protest in Washington, it said.
"The Chinese government and people express their strong indignation at this," the statement said.
"The erroneous acts of the United States will inevitably cause damage to China-US relations, and to the two countries' exchanges and cooperation in areas such as military affairs and security. The responsibility is entirely on the U.S. side."
The U.S. Embassy in Beijing confirmed that Ambassador Locke was summoned by the Chinese Foreign Ministry, but declined to provide further details.
In addition, Guan Youfei, deputy chief of the foreign affairs office in China's Defense Ministry, was instructed Thursday to summon the acting U.S. military attache to China to protest the U.S. decision, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
Xinhua news said in a commentary published before the announcement that the deal would "inevitably" damage U.S.-Chinese ties.
Last week, administration officials briefed U.S. legislative staff on the upgrade plan, part of a consultative process that precedes formal notification of a sale. Once Congress is officially notified of a potential arms sale, it typically has 30 days to act to block the deal.
Jennifer Berlin, a spokeswoman for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the proposal would be studied by the committee.
"Now that Congress has been formally notified of the offer to upgrade Taiwan's fleet of F-16s, the committee will do its customary due diligence to make sure that the outcome is in the best interest of our national security," she said.
—Jeremy Page in Beijing contributed to this article.
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