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Military risks becoming a burden to the US: expert

"Allies who are unable to keep up with the US' pace in developing weapons will become increasingly irrelevant to the US military, and Taiwan could be one of the countries to find itself in this situation."

Chang Hsi-mo, associate professor, Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies,National Sun Yat-sen University

A security expert warned yesterday that Taiwan's military needs to avoid becoming a burden to the US in East Asia as the latter's military capability displays cutting-edge technological developments.

"As the US military becomes able to work faster and more effectively in the region, it will become less dependent on its allies," said Chang Hsi-mo (張錫模), an associate professor in the Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies at National Sun Yat-sen University.

"Allies who are unable to keep up with the US' pace in developing weapons will become increasingly irrelevant to the US military, and Taiwan could be one of the countries to find itself in this situation," he said.

Chang made the comments at a forum sponsored by Taiwan's National Security Institute and Japan's Asia Security Forum.

"Because of cuts in Taiwan's military budget in recent years, its failure to approve the arms procurement bill and to purchase three advanced weapons systems from the US, and the country's inability to conduct substantial military exchanges with the US and Japan due to the lack of official diplomatic ties with the two countries, Taiwan's military is not only falling behind, but is also isolated," he said.

As a result, Chang said that the US and Japan would increasingly come to see Taiwan's military as a burden, rather than an asset.

He recommended that the government and the military tackle the problem as soon as possible.

The US' superpower status stems from it having the most advanced navy in the world -- in terms of both ship quantity and quality -- and its lead in space military technologies, Chang said.

The development of revolutionary new weapons is enhancing the US' military capabilities and shortening its response times around the world, he said.

"US military power will dominate the world and no country will be able to challenge this power as a result of the US' `revolution in military affairs' program, which emphasizes the development of weapons by advancing technologies, military organizations and operational concepts," he said.

For example, Chang said, the US is developing a scramjet which will be commissioned in the next 10 years.

This highly advanced fighter will be able to fly at 15 times the speed of sound, enabling it to cover the distance between Seattle and Beijing in less than half an hour, he said.
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