Taiwan plans to buy US-made torpedoes and heavy tanks to boost its defense capabilities despite improving relations with China, reports said yesterday.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has ordered the Ministry of National Defense to draft a shopping list that includes MK-54 torpedoes, dozens of M1A2 tanks and amphibious landing vehicles, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper) reported.
If acquired, the MK-54s would be used to replace the Navy’s aging MK-46s, it said.
The ministry said the procurement list had yet to finalized.
In January, Washington announced a weapons package for Taipei that includes Patriot missiles, Black Hawk helicopters and equipment for Taiwan’s F-16 fleet, but no submarines or new fighter aircraft.
Beijing reacted angrily to the arms deal, saying it would cut military and security contacts with the US.
Meanwhile, the military started a computerized wargame simulating a D-Day-style attack by China yesterday, the ministry said.
During the five-day drill, Chinese forces attack Taiwan from Guangzhou and Nanjing, while Taiwanese forces test counterattack strategies.
“The purpose of the drill is to test our defense capabilities in the case of the People’s Liberation Army launching an invasion,” a defense ministry official said, declining to provide details.
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