Close to half the members of the US Senate have signed a letter to US President Barack Obama urging him to sell F-16C/D aircraft to Taiwan.

Obama has been putting off a decision on Taipei’s request to buy 66 of the advanced fighters for more than a year now and the letter is thought likely to push the issue onto the front burner.

Washington sources said the US Department of State was against the sale because it risked badly damaging already fragile relations with China, while the US Department of Defense is in favor because Taiwan’s military is in dire need of a boost.