The Ministry of National Defense (MND) yesterday rejected speculation that it might be planning to purchase arms worth US$5.2 billion from the US next year.
The ministry’s remarks came after American Institute in Taiwan Director Brent Christensen told a forum in Taipei on Saturday said that US arms sales to Taiwan this year amounted to US$11.8 billion and that US$5.2 billion in sales were planned for next year.
The sales are to help the nation develop asymmetric warfare capabilities, Christensen said in his speech, adding that arms sales to Taiwan have long been a bipartisan consensus in Washington and the US would fulfill its obligations under the US’ Taiwan Relations Act.
People familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity said that the confusion stemmed from differences in budgeting cycles in Taiwan and the US.
In the US, a fiscal year begins on Oct. 1 and ends on Sept. 30 the following year, they said.
For the fiscal year 2020, notified arms sales to Taiwan totaled US$11.8 billion, while for the fiscal year 2021, which began in last month, US$5.8 billion in arms sales have already been disclosed, they said, adding that all these sales have already been made public.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS