No word yet from US on request for Arleigh Burkes

Minister of National Defense Tang Yao-ming (湯曜明) said yesterday that the military has not received any response from the US about its plan to buy Arleigh Burke-class destroyers which are equipped with state-of-the-art AEGIS radars.

Tang was responding to questions at a Legislative Yuan plenary session about his views on a newspaper report that Tai-pei had asked Washington for four AEGIS-equipped destroyers before Chinese President Jiang Zemin (江澤民) visited the US last week.

According to the press report, the US has tentatively agreed to sell the advanced warships to Taiwan and is expected to announce the sale "early next year at the earliest."

Meanwhile, military spokesman Major General Huang Suey-sheng (黃穗生) said at a routine news conference that the ministry was not aware of what the newspaper had reported.

Huang stressed that the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are the warship that the military has consistently sought to buy to beef up its naval defense capabilities.

Huang said even if the US agrees to sell this type of warship to Taiwan, it will take eight to 10 years for the military to take delivery of any of the newly built Arleigh Burke-class destroyers.

Commenting on reports that the US may sell Taiwan some of the five Arleigh Burke-class warships it plans to retire in 2004, Huang said the US now needs more warships to support its war on terrorism.

"The advanced warships to be retired are more likely to be used as experimental warships to test America's anti-missile capabilities," he noted.

In view of the long lead time needed to acquire the AEGIS-equipped destroyers, Huang said Taiwan must first buy the four Kidd-class destroyers offered by the US to upgrade its naval combat capabilities. The Kidd-class warships are much cheaper than the Arleigh Burke-class destroyers and can be delivered three years after signing the procurement contract.

US President George W. Bush deferred the sale of AEGIS-equipped destroyers in April last year when he announced the most comprehensive arms sale to Taipei since 1992. But according to the latest press report, the two sides have reached consensus on the type of AEGIS destroyers and weaponry to be sold to Taiwan.