President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday at a military ceremony reiterated her resolve to build strong self-defense capabilities for Taiwan.
“Building a capable self-defense will make our military and nation even stronger,” Tsai said, as she presided over a ceremony at Pingtung Airbase to mark the commissioning of 12 P-3C Orion maritime surveillance planes and the decommissioning of the fleet of 11 S-2T Trackers.
The 12 P-3Cs, acquired from the US for US$1.9 billion in 2007, are to replace the aging S-2T maritime patrol aircraft that have been in service for more than 40 years, and are expected to boost the nation’s anti-submarine warfare capabilities, the base said.
Photo: CNA
Seen as playing an essential role in anti-submarine warfare and in defending Taiwan from China, the aircraft are equipped with torpedoes and depth charges designed to sink fast, deep-diving nuclear submarines and high-performance surface vessels.
The new fleet could help the nation counter the threat of submarines and gain naval supremacy in safeguarding Taiwan, Tsai said.
She also praised a project to produce advanced jet fighter training aircraft as part of the government’s efforts to develop a local defense industry.
Photo: Lee Hsin-fang, Taipei Times
In April, the Ministry of National Defense launched the NT$68.6 billion (US$2.29 billion) program that aims to build 66 locally developed advanced jet trainers by 2026, with the first one scheduled to deploy in 2020.
“The plan to build locally developed advanced jet trainers has been faring smoothly and will be carried out as scheduled, with the first completed jet trainer to take off in 2020,” Tsai said.
“As the commander-in-chief of the nation’s military, it is my unwavering mission to build a strong and capable army,” she said, adding that the government remains committed to building submarines in Taiwan despite recent frustrations, referring to a scandal related to a local firm contracted to build minesweepers for the navy.
Ching Fu Shipbuilding Co (慶富造船) won the NT$34.9 billion contract to build six minesweepers for the navy in October 2014.
The firm is under investigation for trying to secure a NT$20.5 billion syndicated loan from a group of domestic banks, allegedly by using bogus documents to falsify four capital increments that made it eligible to receive the loan.
A total of 18 former and acting navy officers last week received a wide range of punishments, from demerits to admonitions, for failing to confirm that Ching Fu had the requisite financial and manufacturing ability before awarding the contract to the company and failing to monitor the execution of the contract.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique