A Mainland Affairs Council official yesterday said China aims to exert some psychological pressure on Taiwan by sailing the first of two recently-purchased Sovremenny-class guided-missile destroyers through the Taiwan Strait.
"It is an added value which China plans to achieve from its taking delivery of the first Sovremenny destroyer," said Lin Chong-pin (
Lin denied rumors that the destroyer's passage might have anything to do with trying to disrupt the March 18 presidential election.
It was reported that the Russian-made destroyer would cruise through the Taiwan Strait during the night between today and tomorrow under the escort of an unidentified number of navy warships.
The ship's route was planned to run along the coastline of China, avoiding entering waters which might spark a dispute with Taiwan.
China has ordered two of the ships from Russia and is reported to have options on two more.
The Ministry of National Defense's (MND) response was muted, saying that it was not unusual for the destroyer to pass through the Taiwan Strait on its way to its designated base, the headquarters of the East China Sea Fleet, in Zhejiang Province.
The low-key response was in stark contrast to comments made by Minister of National Defense, Tang Fei (唐飛) before the Chinese New Year vacation, who then warned that the intrusion into the Taiwan Strait by any hostile warship would be met with an intensive missile attack from Taiwan no matter how strongly armed the ship.
Chang Li-teh (
An official with the MND, who declined to be identified, said the military has been closely watching the movement of the Sovremenny-class ship through its surveillance radars and that if need be, fighter planes will be sent to monitor the situation.
Major Chai Wen-chung (翟文中), a researcher at the ministry, said several years ago that four Kilo-class submarines which China ordered from Russia also passed through the Taiwan Strait.
"There is nothing special about the Sovremenny destroyer's up-coming passage through the Taiwan Strait. What need concern us is that the ship's deployment will shorten Taiwan's reaction time against an anti-ship missile attack from China's fighting ships," Chai said.
"China bought the Sovremenny-class ship mainly for two reasons. First, it plans to use it as an escort ship for aircraft carriers to be built," he said. "Second, it wants to raise the threshold of a potential intervention by the US in an armed conflict between China and Taiwan through the deployment of state-of-the-art naval technology."
Meanwhile, Government Information Office director Chao Yi (趙怡) warned that according to information collected by Taiwan's intelligence agents, China has sent more spies into Taiwan and has raised the combat readiness of troops in certain regions, signs of some action to be taken in the lead-up to the presidential election.
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