Tue, Jan 28, 2003 page4

• No deal for a discount on Kidd destroyers, navy says

  PREMATURE Military officials confirmed that they had asked the US for a further discount on the ships, but were quick to add that nothing has been promised

  • By Brian Hsu / STAFF REPORTER
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  The navy yesterday denied reports that the US has agreed to reduce the price on four Kidd-class destroyers by 15 percent, insisting that the US military has promised only to consider giving the discount.

  "The US promised to think about charging less for the four Kidd-class destroyers during the most recent meeting between the two countries on the deal," a navy spokesman said. "It is premature to say they have agreed."

  "Besides, US military officials responsible for the talks with our representatives do not have the power to make the decision. They have to submit the case to higher authorities," the spokesman said.

  The spokesman made the statement in response to a report in the Chinese-language Liberty Times yesterday which quoted unidentified US officials as saying that Washington had agreed to a request to discount the sale price of the Kidds.

  The navy also issued a similar written statement, which added that the agreement was made in a recent discussion of the matter by military representatives from the two countries.

  The navy confirmed that the meeting took place several days ago in Washington. The Taiwan's delegation being led by a two-star general from the procurement system of the Ministry of National Defense, the navy said.

  The US Navy sent only a captain for the discussions, with other branches of the US military also sending mid-ranking representatives, sources said.

  An navy official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the US representatives at the talks were obviously not in a position to make any decision on the matter.

  "People might be curious about whether it is possible for the US to yield to our request to cut the cost for the Kidds deal by 15 percent. But no one knows the answer for the moment," the official said.

  "Strictly speaking, we are not sure whether there is still room for the cost reduction, since the US has already given us a price discount," he said.

  "The US initially wanted to charge us 20 percent of the original price for the four Kidds plus their weaponry. They later reduced the charge by 15 percent to 5 percent of the original cost for the Kidds," he said.

  "The US has already given us a great discount. Now we are asking for another discount. We really do not know whether the US will agree," he said.

  The request to cut the cost for the Kidds deal by 15 percent came from a resolution by the Legislative Yuan's Defense Committee during the final legislative session at the end of last year.

  The resolution was the result of a compromise between the DPP and KMT.

  After the deal to buy the Kidds had been arranged, the purchase had to be approved by the legislature. KMT lawmakers brought up the idea of asking for a 15-percent discount on the deal. They threatened to boycott the deal if their request was not adopted.

  To prevent a boycott from sabotaging the deal, the DPP's legislative caucus gave ground and endorsed the KMT's proposal. The proposal later became a binding resolution from the Defense Committee.
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