The Presidential Office yesterday thanked Washington after the US Department of State approved the sale of 40 Paladin M109A6 self-propelled howitzers and related equipment to Taiwan, the first such deal since US President Joe Biden took office in January.
With the sale, the US is honoring its commitment to furnish Taiwan with defensive articles under the US’ Taiwan Relations Act and the “six assurances,” Presidential Office spokesperson Xavier Chang (張惇涵) said while expressing the government’s “sincere gratitude” for the deal.
The US Department of Defense’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a statement that it notified Congress on Wednesday of the US$750 million deal.
Photo: AFP
In addition to logistical support, the package includes 40 155mm M109A6 medium self-propelled howitzer systems; 20 M992A2 field artillery ammunition support vehicles; an advanced field artillery tactical data system; five M88A2 Hercules vehicles; five M2 Chrysler mount .50 caliber machine guns; and 1,698 multi-option precision guidance kits, the agency said.
The sale would “contribute to the modernization of the recipient’s self-propelled howitzer fleet, enhancing its ability to meet current and future threats ... while further enhancing interoperability with the United States and other allies,” it said.
The package marks the first US arms sale to Taiwan under the Biden administration, “fully demonstrating the US government’s high regard for Taiwan’s defense capabilities,” Chang said.
Washington’s provision of defensive arms helps boost Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities, thereby improving the nation’s ability and confidence to preserve regional and cross-strait peace, he said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday confirmed receipt of official notice from Washington about the package.
The US has continued its policy of normalizing arms sales to Taiwan in recent years, helping the nation to acquire defensive equipment in a timely manner, the ministry said.
Despite Chinese aggression, Taiwan would continue to improve its defensive capabilities to safeguard the lives and property of Taiwanese, and their democratic way of life, it said.
Through close cooperation with the US, the nation would maintain peace in the Taiwan Strait and keep contributing to the long-term peace, stability and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific region, it said.
The package is likely to be formally confirmed by Congress after a month, the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement, thanking Washington for the agreement that would help “enhance the rapid response and fire support capabilities of our ground forces.”
Separately, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it has lodged stern representations with the US while promising to take appropriate countermeasures.
The agreement interferes in internal Chinese affairs and “sends a wrong message to Taiwan independence secessionist forces” in contravention of international law and norms, it said.
The Chinese ministry also urged Washington to abide by the “one China” principle and the Three Joint Communiques, and to immediately cease all military cooperation with Taiwan to “avoid further damaging China-US relations, and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
EUROPEAN TARGETS: The planned Munich center would support TSMC’s European customers to design high-performance, energy-efficient chips, an executive said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday said that it plans to launch a new research-and-development (R&D) center in Munich, Germany, next quarter to assist customers with chip design. TSMC Europe president Paul de Bot made the announcement during a technology symposium in Amsterdam on Tuesday, the chipmaker said. The new Munich center would be the firm’s first chip designing center in Europe, it said. The chipmaker has set up a major R&D center at its base of operations in Hsinchu and plans to create a new one in the US to provide services for major US customers,
RESILIENCE: Deepening bilateral cooperation would extend the peace sustained over the 45 years since the Taiwan Relations Act, Greene said Taiwan-US relations are built on deep economic ties and shared values, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Raymond Greene said yesterday, adding that strengthening supply chain security in critical industries, enhancing societal resilience through cooperation and deepening partnerships are key to ensuring peace and stability for Taiwan in the years ahead. Greene made the remarks at the National Security Youth Forum, organized by National Taiwan University’s National Security and Strategy Studies Institution in Taipei. In his address in Mandarin Chinese, Greene said the Taiwan-US relationship is built on deep economic ties and shared interests, and grows stronger through the enduring friendship between
GAINING STEAM: The scheme initially failed to gather much attention, with only 188 cards issued in its first year, but gained popularity amid the COVID-19 pandemic Applications for the Employment Gold Card have increased in the past few years, with the card having been issued to a total of 13,191 people from 101 countries since its introduction in 2018, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday. Those who have received the card have included celebrities, such as former NBA star Dwight Howard and Australian-South Korean cheerleader Dahye Lee, the NDC said. The four-in-one Employment Gold Card combines a work permit, resident visa, Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) and re-entry permit. It was first introduced in February 2018 through the Act Governing Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及雇用法),
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday said that it would redesign the written portion of the driver’s license exam to make it more rigorous. “We hope that the exam can assess drivers’ understanding of traffic rules, particularly those who take the driver’s license test for the first time. In the past, drivers only needed to cram a book of test questions to pass the written exam,” Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) told a news conference at the Taoyuan Motor Vehicle Office. “In the future, they would not be able to pass the test unless they study traffic regulations