The US defense company Raytheon has been given a US$1.1 billion contract to supply a new Patriot Air and Missile Defense System to Taiwan.
Former US president George W. Bush approved the sale last year and it took 14 months to reach this stage.
The contract comes just as US President Barack Obama is expected to inform Congress that he has approved a new arms package for Taiwan. That announcement could come at any time.
Raytheon president Daniel Smith said on Wednesday night in Washington: “The Patriot system is a vital element to providing superior integrated air and missile defense capabilities for the protection of Taiwan. Raytheon has provided advanced technology, innovation and support for Taiwan for more than 40 years, and we are honored to continue that partnership today and in the future.”
The contract, issued by the US Army Aviation and Missile Command, is in two parts. The first, for US$965.6 million, covers the missile launchers or “ground-system hardware,” while the second, for US$134.4 million, is for spare parts. The actual missiles will be covered in yet another contract to be issued shortly.
Raytheon has annual sales of US$23 billion.
While details of the Patriot system remain highly classified, the version now being sold to Taiwan is known to be more advanced, more accurate and more reliable than the older system now in use.
It is designed to intercept and destroy incoming ballistic missiles. China has more than 1,000 such missiles aimed at Taiwan.
Beijing strongly objected to the sale when it was first announced and is expected to raise further objections now that it is definitely going ahead.
The new arms package to be announced soon is expected to include UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters and more “advanced capability” Patriot missiles, known as PAC-3 missiles.
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
COGNITIVE WARFARE: Chinese fishing boats transmitting fake identification signals are meant to test Taiwan’s responses to different kinds of perceived incursions, a report said Chinese vessels are transmitting fake signals in Taiwan’s waters as a form of cognitive warfare, testing Taipei’s responses to various types of incursions, a report by the Institute for the Study of War said on Friday. Several Chinese fishing vessels transmitted fake automatic identification system (AIS) signals in Taiwan’s waters last month, with one mimicking a Russian warship and another impersonating a Chinese law enforcement vessel, the report said. Citing data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the report said that throughout August and last month, the Chinese fishing boat Minshiyu 06718 (閩獅漁06718) sailed through the Taiwan Strait while intermittently transmitting its own AIS
CHINESE INFILTRATION: Medical logistics is a lifeline during wartime and the reported CCP links of a major logistics company present a national security threat, an expert said The government would bolster its security check system to prevent China from infiltrating the nation’s medical cold chain, a national security official said yesterday. The official, who wished to stay anonymous, made the remarks after the Chinese-language magazine Mirror Media (鏡周刊) reported that Pharma Logistics (嘉里醫藥物流) is in charge of the medical logistics of about half of the nation’s major hospitals, including National Taiwan University Hospital and Taipei Veterans General Hospital. The company’s parent, Kerry TJ Logistics Co (嘉里大榮物流), is associated with the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the
COVETED PRIZE: The US president would be a peace prize laureate should he persuade Xi Jinping to abandon military aggression against Taiwan, William Lai said US President Donald Trump should get the Nobel Peace Prize should he be able to convince Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to abandon the use of force against Taiwan, President William Lai (賴清德) told a conservative US radio show and podcast in an interview. The US is Taiwan’s most important international backer, despite the absence of formal ties, but since Trump took office earlier this year he has not announced any new arms sales to the nation. Trump could meet Xi at the APEC summit in South Korea on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1. Lai, speaking on The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton
RSS