Taipei and Washington have signed an agreement to share information on scientific research that would allow representatives of Taiwan’s research institutions, including the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology and the Ministry of National Defense’s Armaments Bureau, to visit national defense research institutions and laboratories in the US next year, an unnamed senior military official said yesterday.
Such US facilities have never been open to Taiwanese researchers, the official said, adding that the deal would greatly benefit Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities, including the domestic production of military vessels and aircraft.
Cooperation with the US is expected to shorten the institute’s development and production time and could provide a breakthrough, as well as reduce the time needed for ongoing enhancement programs for the Tien Kung (“Sky Bow”) surface-to-air missile, the Tien Chien (“Sky Sword”) air-to-air missile and the Hsiung Feng (“Brave Wind”) anti-ship missile systems, the source said.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
It could also help the institute cut costs, the official said, adding that the benefits are difficult to measure.
The official did not specify which facilities Taiwanese representatives would be allowed to visit, saying that would depend on US officials.
Taiwan’s resources are limited, as the annual defense budget is only about US$10 billion, the official said, adding that as it is difficult to compete with China in terms of quantity, Taiwan needs to focus its resources on key projects.
Photo: Yu Tai-lang, Taipei Times
Although Taiwan is confident about its technological capabilities, the US is the world leader in the arms industry, said Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇), coconvener of the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee.
If Taiwanese and US researchers can visit each other, it would help Taiwan achieve breakthroughs in military technology, he said.
More importantly, exchanges between researchers are on a higher level than joint military exercises, Wang said, adding that they would symbolize close relations with the US.
Photo: Lo Tien-pin, Taipei Times
The passage of US legislation that is advantageous to Taiwan, including parts of the latest National Defense Authorization Act and the Taiwan Travel Act, have created opportunities to facilitate equal and mutually beneficial exchanges between Taiwan and the US, said Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lu Yu-ling (呂玉玲), the committee’s other coconvener.
However, as Taiwan is in desperate need of actual assistance from the US, mutual exchanges between military research institutions would provide a significant boost to Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities and the development of the domestic defense industry, she said.
As relations warm between North and South Korea, and North Korea and the US, Taiwan cannot become a bargaining chip in international relations, Lu said.
Aside from improving Taiwan-US relations, if Taiwan engages in further exchanges with the US military and research institutions, it could also improve the nation’s self-defense capabilities, in turn elevating its importance and position on the international stage, she said.
NO-LIMITS PARTNERSHIP: ‘The bottom line’ is that if the US were to have a conflict with China or Russia it would likely open up a second front with the other, a US senator said Beijing and Moscow could cooperate in a conflict over Taiwan, the top US intelligence chief told the US Senate this week. “We see China and Russia, for the first time, exercising together in relation to Taiwan and recognizing that this is a place where China definitely wants Russia to be working with them, and we see no reason why they wouldn’t,” US Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines told a US Senate Committee on Armed Services hearing on Thursday. US Senator Mike Rounds asked Haines about such a potential scenario. He also asked US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lieutenant General Jeffrey Kruse
INSPIRING: Taiwan has been a model in the Asia-Pacific region with its democratic transition, free and fair elections and open society, the vice president-elect said Taiwan can play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, vice president-elect Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a forum in Taipei yesterday, highlighting the nation’s resilience in the face of geopolitical challenges. “Not only can Taiwan help, but Taiwan can lead ... not only can Taiwan play a leadership role, but Taiwan’s leadership is important to the world,” Hsiao told the annual forum hosted by the Center for Asia-Pacific Resilience and Innovation think tank. Hsiao thanked Taiwan’s international friends for their long-term support, citing the example of US President Joe Biden last month signing into law a bill to provide aid to Taiwan,
China’s intrusive and territorial claims in the Indo-Pacific region are “illegal, coercive, aggressive and deceptive,” new US Indo-Pacific Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo said on Friday, adding that he would continue working with allies and partners to keep the area free and open. Paparo made the remarks at a change-of-command ceremony at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii, where he took over the command from Admiral John Aquilino. “Our world faces a complex problem set in the troubling actions of the People’s Republic of China [PRC] and its rapid buildup of forces. We must be ready to answer the PRC’s increasingly intrusive and
STATE OF THE NATION: The legislature should invite the president to deliver an address every year, the TPP said, adding that Lai should also have to answer legislators’ questions The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday proposed inviting president-elect William Lai (賴清德) to make a historic first state of the nation address at the legislature following his inauguration on May 20. Lai is expected to face many domestic and international challenges, and should clarify his intended policies with the public’s representatives, KMT caucus secretary-general Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said when making the proposal at a meeting of the legislature’s Procedure Committee. The committee voted to add the item to the agenda for Friday, along with another similar proposal put forward by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP). The invitation is in line with Article 15-2