Taiwan should continue to procure equipment and services from the US to maintain its Patriot missile defense system, as it is the nation’s first line of defense against a Chinese missile attack should a cross-strait war break out, defense experts said yesterday.
The comments came after Washington on Tuesday announced that it has approved the sale of US$95 million of training and equipment to maintain Taiwan’s Patriot missile defense system.
Three defense experts told the Central News Agency that the deal involving logistical support, maintenance and spare parts is crucial for Taiwan’s operation of the defense system.
Photo: CNA
Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), an analyst at the government-funded Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has exposed the latter’s lack of a medium to long-range missile defense system, which makes it vulnerable to Russian missile attacks.
Compared with Ukraine, Taiwan’s Patriot missile system allows the nation to intercept incoming missiles, although there is some disagreement as to its efficacy, Su said.
In addition to the US system, Taiwan’s military is also equipped with locally developed Tien Kong (Sky Bow) surface-to-air missiles.
These complement the Patriot missile system to establish more comprehensive air defenses against China, Su said.
Chieh Chung (揭仲), an associate research fellow at the National Policy Foundation in Taipei, said that Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missiles are smaller, more agile and more accurate, and can be deployed in large numbers, which makes them highly effective against ballistic missiles.
He added that the Sky Bow system can intercept incoming enemy aircraft in addition to ballistic missiles.
Chou Yu-ping (周宇平), a retired air force colonel from the Air Missile Defense Command, said Taiwan uses the PAC-3 and upgraded PAC-2 systems.
He said that PAC-2 and PAC-3 have both proven capable of intercepting missiles in combat.
The military last month confirmed that it has reached a deal with the US to buy an upgraded version of PAC-3, namely PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement, with delivery to start in 2025 and deployment the following year.
The latest arms deal announced on Tuesday could also mean the US will send personnel to Taiwan to prepare for the PAC-3 upgrades, Chieh said.
It was the third arms sale approved since US President Joe Biden took office in January last year.
The first, approved in August last year, is for the acquisition of 40 Paladin M109A6 self-propelled howitzers at a cost of US$750 million.
The second, approved in February, is worth US$100 million, and includes equipment and services to support participation in the Patriot International Engineering Services Program and Field Surveillance Program for five years.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
MORE NEEDED: Recall drives against legislators in Miaoli’s two districts and Hsinchu’s second district were still a few thousand signatures short of the second-stage threshold Campaigners aiming to recall Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators yesterday said they expect success in 30 out of 35 districts where drives have passed the second-stage threshold, which would mark a record number of recall votes held at once. Hsinchu County recall campaigners yesterday announced that they reached the second-stage threshold in the recall effort against Legislator Lin Szu-ming (林思銘). A total of 26,414 signatures have been gathered over the past two months, surpassing the 10 percent threshold of 23,287 in Hsinchu County’s second electoral district, chief campaigner Hsieh Ting-ting (謝婷婷) said. “Our target is to gather an additional 1,500 signatures to reach
RSS