Minister of National Defense Lee Jye (
"It is a air-to-surface missile with standoff capability which could be used in attacking the enemy's airports," Lee said during a meeting of the legislature's National Defense Committee.
Lee's comment was the first official confirmation of the development of the weapon under the "Ten Thousand Sword" plan by the ministry's Chung Shan Institute of Science and Technology.
According to previous media reports, the weapon is a kind of cluster bomb, able to operate from ranges outside enemy defenses.
Lee also told lawmakers, in response to questions, that he prefers the US build the eight diesel submarines that are part of the long-delayed arms procurement budget.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Yu-fang (
Lin noted that US Representative Rob Simmons, who visited Taipei last month, had said the price for the eight subs could drop to around US$8 billion.
"The US has not exported its subs to other countries, and I believe that US subs have many high-tech systems not known to the outside world, so I firmly believe the US can make better quality subs for Taiwan than Europe," Lee said.
Since the US has not built diesel subs for about 35 years, it plans to find a European country that is willing to build the eight subs for Taiwan once the legislature passes the procurement bill, Lee said.
However, Simmons, who met Lee last month during his visit, has said that US Electric Boat has declared itself capable and willing to produce a series of advanced diesel submarines for Taiwan.
The minister also agreed yesterday with Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Wen-chung's (李文忠) proposal that top sub experts from around the world be hired as consultants to decide how much money the country should pay for the eight vessels.
Only such a consultancy could resolve the current standoff, Lee Wen-chung said.
Lee Jye said the ministry would ask for a supplementary budget to cover preliminary spending on the subs, such as consultants' fees.
The ministry has previously said that the submarine budget was arrived at by the US Navy through an independent cost estimate system in January 2003, and that the US Navy has refused to negotiate on the budget before the submarine purchase is approved by the legislature.
Lee Jye said he would press the US to separate the cost of designing the subs from building them.
CHAOS: Iranians took to the streets playing celebratory music after reports of Khamenei’s death on Saturday, while mourners also gathered in Tehran yesterday Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a major attack on Iran launched by Israel and the US, throwing the future of the Islamic republic into doubt and raising the risk of regional instability. Iranian state television and the state-run IRNA news agency announced the 86-year-old’s death early yesterday. US President Donald Trump said it gave Iranians their “greatest chance” to “take back” their country. The announcements came after a joint US and Israeli aerial bombardment that targeted Iranian military and governmental sites. Trump said the “heavy and pinpoint bombing” would continue through the week or as long
TRUST: The KMT said it respected the US’ timing and considerations, and hoped it would continue to honor its commitments to helping Taiwan bolster its defenses and deterrence US President Donald Trump is delaying a multibillion-dollar arms sale to Taiwan to ensure his visit to Beijing is successful, a New York Times report said. The weapons sales package has stalled in the US Department of State, the report said, citing US officials it did not identify. The White House has told agencies not to push forward ahead of Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), it said. The two last month held a phone call to discuss trade and geopolitical flashpoints ahead of the summit. Xi raised the Taiwan issue and urged the US to handle arms sales to
An Emirates flight from Dubai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday afternoon, the first service of the airline since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Saturday. Flight EK366 took off from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at 3:51am yesterday and landed at 4:02pm before taxiing to the airport’s D6 gate at Terminal 2 at 4:08pm, data from the airport and FlightAware, a global flight tracking site, showed. Of the 501 passengers on the flight, 275 were Taiwanese, including 96 group tour travelers, the data showed. Tourism Administration Deputy Director-General Huang He-ting (黃荷婷) greeted Taiwanese passengers at the airport and
State-run CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday said that it had confirmed on Saturday night with its liquefied natural gas (LNG) and crude oil suppliers that shipments are proceeding as scheduled and that domestic supplies remain unaffected. The CPC yesterday announced the gasoline and diesel prices will rise by NT$0.2 and NT$0.4 per liter, respectively, starting Monday, citing Middle East tensions and blizzards in the eastern United States. CPC also iterated it has been reducing the proportion of crude oil imports from the Middle East and diversifying its supply sources in the past few years in response to geopolitical risks, expanding
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