The nation’s top priority in buying arms from the US is obtaining submarines to bolster its naval defense, while buying more advanced fighter jets is second on the list, according to Minister of National Defense Yen Ming (嚴明).
“Our first priority is the purchase of diesel-electric submarines. The second priority is the purchase of a new generation of fighter jets,” Yen told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee yesterday as he presented a report on national defense policy.
Discussions are ongoing between senior officials of both sides on the nation’s arms upgrade and procurement requests. US Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Jonathan Greenert confirmed on Sept. 8 that he had a conversation with Taiwanese navy officers regarding the sale or provision of submarines to the nation.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Administrative Deputy Minister of National Defense Kao Tien-chung (高天忠) confirmed that domestic-developed Sky Sword II missiles will be deployed on the navy’s Kang Ting (康定級艦) (Lafayette)-class frigates.
Kao said the missiles recently went through successful sea-to-air live-fire testing aboard the nation’s Chi Yang-class (濟陽級艦) frigates, which are upgraded Knox-class frigates from the US, and they had achieved satisfactory results by hitting their intended targets.
Kao said that the Sky Sword II missiles will soon be tested for deployment on the nation’s six Kang Ting-class frigates, to replace their aging US-made Sea Chaparral missiles, in order to boost the nation’s naval combat strength in its maritime territory.
Made by Taiwan’s Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, the radar-guided air-to-air Sky Sword missile system was originally developed in the 1990s as weapons specifically outfitted for Indigenous Defense Fighter jets.
Regarding the transfer of the Sea Chaparral missiles, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) suggested that they be installed for defense against air attacks on the Taiwan-controlled Itu Aba (Taiping Island, 太平島), which is the largest of the Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島) in the South China Sea.
Yen said the suggestion would be taken into consideration.
The military had earlier planned to install Sky Sword I missiles, or Stingers, and portable surface-to-air missiles, which can be mounted on mobile vehicle launchers, to enhance the defensive capabilities of the Taiping Island naval base.
Meanwhile, after a presentation by military officials, the bipartisan legislators on the committee approved the release of a NT$2.147 billion (US$70.4 million) portion of the defense budget that was held up in the previous legislative session.
The frozen budget items, relating to 20 military programs, were presented in specific case reports at the meeting.
The brilliant blue waters, thick foliage and bucolic atmosphere on this seemingly idyllic archipelago deep in the Pacific Ocean belie the key role it now plays in a titanic geopolitical struggle. Palau is again on the front line as China, and the US and its allies prepare their forces in an intensifying contest for control over the Asia-Pacific region. The democratic nation of just 17,000 people hosts US-controlled airstrips and soon-to-be-completed radar installations that the US military describes as “critical” to monitoring vast swathes of water and airspace. It is also a key piece of the second island chain, a string of
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