The US plans to sell eight diesel-powered submarines to Taiwan to counter the growing military threat from China, a local newspaper reported yesterday.
Taiwan and US officials are scheduled to meet next week for annual arms sales talks. According to the Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday, the US will approve the sale of eight submarines during the talks.
The report, which quoted anonymous sources close to the navy's top decision-makers, said the German-designed submarines will be built in the US.
The vessels have estimated price tag of US$4 billion (NT$128 billion) -- almost half of Taiwan's annual defense budget.
The report follows closely an eight-day visit by ROC Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Li Chieh (李傑) to the US. Li left for the US on April 6 and returned on Sunday.
Li reportedly raised the issue of the submarine sale during his US trip. The visit was considered by local media to be closely connected with the annual arms talks.
The talks are scheduled to begin next week when Deputy Chief of the General Staff General Ho Shou-yeh (霍守業) leads a delegation to the US.
Erich Shih (
"We have been asking for the submarines for many years. The reason we asked the US to sell us German-designed submarines is because Germany does not allow trade in arms with Taiwan," Shih said.
He added that the submarines Taiwan has requested feature an "air-independent" propulsion system that features advanced fuel-cell technology.
Chung Chien (
Chung noted that China will finish building its first aircraft carrier this year, and the subs are needed to act as a deterrent.
"The US will surely want us to become their first-line deterrent forces against the growing Chinese military power," he said.
But while the US appears ready to sell Taiwan the diesel submarines, there are signs that Washington is reluctant to approve the sale of AEGIS-equipped destroyers.
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