A US congressional committee on Thursday questioned the US Navy over what it called “alarming delays” in weapons deliveries to Taiwan, asking why production sometimes languished for months or years after purchasing deals were signed.
Time was running out to deter military action by China toward Taiwan, US Representative Mike Gallagher, chair of the House of Representatives’ Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and US Representative Young Kim, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Indo Pacific, said in the letter to US Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro.
With more than 340 warships, China possesses the largest naval fleet in the world, and deterring a Chinese invasion of Taiwan “will require turning the island into a porcupine, stockpiled with an arsenal of weapons that can target the Chinese fleet and prevent the PLA [People’s Liberation Army] from establishing a lodgment in Taiwan,” the letter said.
Photo: Reuters
“At this hour of danger, however, when the United States should be arming Taiwan to the maximum to strengthen its defenses and deter Chinese aggression, bureaucratic delays within the Navy are impeding the timely production and delivery of key weapons to Taiwan,” the letter said.
The lawmakers highlighted the need for anti-ship Harpoon and Standoff Land Attack Missile-Expanded Response (SLAM-ER) missiles, both of which the US agreed years ago to sell to Taiwan.
It took until April for the navy to enter a contract for production of 400 ground-launched Harpoon missiles to Taiwan, the lawmakers wrote, adding that was two-and-a-half years after the US Department of Defense’s October 2020 announcement of the sale to Taiwan of the weapons, they said.
That risked putting delivery beyond 2027, the year US officials say is China’s target date to be ready to conduct an invasion, they added.
Gallagher and Kim said 10 months after Taiwan signed a letter of acceptance to purchase 60 air-launched Harpoons and 135 SLAM-ER missiles in December last year, the navy still had not asked contractors to submit bids for production.
Such lengthy timelines are not unique to those two systems, they added.
“The inability to supply key weapons at such a consequential moment in our efforts to prevent war is deeply troubling,” they said, asking the navy to clarify deadlines for Harpoon delivery and requests for bids for those missiles, and provide assessments for speeding up contracting and production.
China has repeatedly demanded the US end what Beijing sees as Washington’s provocative support for Taiwan’s military.
The US is Taiwan’s most important arms supplier, and top US military leaders have also acknowledged the need to speed up delivery.
Taiwan has in recent years complained of delays to other US weapon deliveries, such as Stinger anti-aircraft missiles. Taipei has asked the US at times to turn to alternate suppliers or allies to help source equipment.
Additional reporting by CNA
The paramount chief of a volcanic island in Vanuatu yesterday said that he was “very impressed” by a UN court’s declaration that countries must tackle climate change. Vanuatu spearheaded the legal case at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, which on Wednesday ruled that countries have a duty to protect against the threat of a warming planet. “I’m very impressed,” George Bumseng, the top chief of the Pacific archipelago’s island of Ambrym, told reporters in the capital, Port Vila. “We have been waiting for this decision for a long time because we have been victims of this climate change for
Rainfall is expected to become more widespread and persistent across central and southern Taiwan over the next few days, with the effects of the weather patterns becoming most prominent between last night and tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Independent meteorologist Daniel Wu (吳德榮) said that based on the latest forecast models of the combination of a low-pressure system and southwesterly winds, rainfall and flooding are expected to continue in central and southern Taiwan from today to Sunday. The CWA also warned of flash floods, thunder and lightning, and strong gusts in these areas, as well as landslides and fallen
MASSIVE LOSS: If the next recall votes also fail, it would signal that the administration of President William Lai would continue to face strong resistance within the legislature The results of recall votes yesterday dealt a blow to the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) efforts to overturn the opposition-controlled legislature, as all 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers survived the recall bids. Backed by President William Lai’s (賴清德) DPP, civic groups led the recall drive, seeking to remove 31 out of 39 KMT lawmakers from the 113-seat legislature, in which the KMT and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) together hold a majority with 62 seats, while the DPP holds 51 seats. The scale of the recall elections was unprecedented, with another seven KMT lawmakers facing similar votes on Aug. 23. For a
All 24 lawmakers of the main opposition Chinese Nationalists Party (KMT) on Saturday survived historical nationwide recall elections, ensuring that the KMT along with Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) lawmakers will maintain opposition control of the legislature. Recall votes against all 24 KMT lawmakers as well as Hsinchu Mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) and KMT legislative caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) failed to pass, according to Central Election Commission (CEC) figures. In only six of the 24 recall votes did the ballots cast in favor of the recall even meet the threshold of 25 percent of eligible voters needed for the recall to pass,
RSS