Taiwan's Air Force has confirmed it expects to buy more than 60 new Lockheed Martin Block 70 F-16C/D Vipers and released an infographic about the fighter jets that says "See you soon!" This comes amid reports that President Donald Trump's Administration has submitted the proposed deal to Congress for an informal review and approval. Doing this means the U.S. government doesn't have to formally announce the potential sale, which is still guaranteed to infuriate China and has the potential to scuttle negotiations to end a trade war between the two countries and otherwise inflame tensions. The Taiwanese Air Force included in the infographic in a post on Facebook on August 16, 2019. That same social media post also declared that the United States had agreed to sell Taiwan the advanced F-16s in "Minguo 108," or 2019. The government on the island uses the Minguo calendar, which starts in 1912 with the founding of the Republic of China, for official documents. Also on August 16, 2019, there were numerous reports, citing anonymous sources, that the Trump Administration had asked the House and Senate Foreign Relations Committees to conduct an informal review of the possible sale. News first emerged that the U.S. government was considering selling the fighter jets to Taiwan, something China has said would be crossing a "red line," in March 2019.

The U.S. State Department has refused to confirm that this process is in motion, saying it doesn't comment on possible foreign arms sales until Congress has received a formal notification. Typically, this formal alert coincides with a public announcement from the Department of Defense's Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA), which handles foreign military sales requests. After a formal notification, Congress is supposed to have 30 days to approve the deal. It is important to note that this does not guarantee the sale and Taiwan and Lockheed Martin would have to hash out the final terms of the contract. However, the Taiwanese Air Force and a number of members of Congress are certainly treating it as all but a done deal.

Taiwanese Air Force The Taiwanese Air Force's "See you soon!" infographic.