What? No reduced F-16 request?

Riding on the bike path in Dongshih.

BREAKING: Just heard that President Ma wouldn't let the "activists" who were heading to the Senkakus with Hong Kongers aboard dock in Taiwan. News report on original plans. FocusTaiwan's report from earlier today saying the gov't had no information on any such boats, although the Coast Guard was going to accompany them. It also says Japanese lawmakers slated to visit the islands Sunday. Looking forward to the news reports tomorrow...

This was all over the news yesterday...Taiwan to request fewer F-16s

Local media reported Aug. 13 that Taiwan had renewed the call during the just-concluded “Monterey talks” in the U.S., the highest-level annual meeting between U.S. and Taiwanese military officers.

“But the number of desired F-16 C/Ds has fallen to 24, down from 66 when the Taiwanese delegates put forth the proposal,” the Taipei-based China Times quoted an “authoritative military source” as saying.

Suddenly the Defense Ministry is denying it discussed a smaller number of F-16s. Change the number, ask for different aircraft, it's all just yanking America's chain. Or perhaps the American side was planting stories, just to confuse the issue. Round and round we go. The KMT Administration doesn't want the F-16s, and the Americans don't want to sell them. For the moment....
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