The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday unveiled its first domestically built 600-tonne patrol vessel at a ceremony in Kaohsiung.
Construction of the ship, based on the design for the navy’s Tuo Chiang-class corvettes, began in January last year. Work on a second patrol vessel began later in the same year.
Vice Premier Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) attended the launch for the new vessel — the Anping (安平) — at the docks of Jong Shyn Shipbuilding Corp, which was commissioned to build it.
Photo: Hung Chen-hung, Taipei Times
Yesterday’s ceremony also marked the start of work on a third 600-tonne patrol vessel, as well as a third 35-tonne vessel for the CGA.
Similar to the Tuo Chiang-class ships, the Anping has a large deck and retains the launchers for Hsiung Feng II and III missiles, CGA fleet branch head Ching-chin (謝慶欽) said.
However, it differs from the Tuo Chiang in its added facilities and equipment for rescue operations, he said.
The vessel is capable of speeds of up to 40 knots, and would greatly increase the agency’s rescue and operations capabilities in the open seas, he said.
The CGA’s long-term plans call for a total of 141 new vessels of different classes, and the Anping is to be delivered in October — two months ahead of schedule, he said.
The government has budgeted NT$4.26 billion (US$141.9 million) for domestic shipbuilding, and hopes it can spur the shipbuilding industry while meeting the nation’s defense needs, Chen said.
Building 600-tonne CGA ships with missile launchers means that the nation’s defense capacity can be quickly boosted in the event of a war, he said.
Domestic shipbuilding would also create 8,000 job opportunities and NT$100 billion in manufacturing output, he said.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS