The addition of US-made M1A2T Abrams tanks would enhance Taiwan’s military capabilities in anti-landing operations, Taiwanese defense experts said following the arrival of the first batch of the advanced armored vehicles in the country on Sunday.
The 38 M1A2T tanks, a variant of the M1 Abrams, were delivered to the Port of Taipei on Sunday. Before this, deliveries of the last type of tank Taiwan received from the US, the M60A3, began in 1994.
The delivery marks the arrival of the first batch of 108 M1A2T tanks and related equipment, which the US government approved for sale to Taiwan in 2019.
Photo: EPA-EFE
They were transported to the Hsinchu-based Armor Training Command yesterday.
The army previously said that 10 of the tanks would remain at its Armor Training Command and the rest would be deployed to two armored brigades in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口) and Hsinchu County’s Hukou Township (湖口) to help defend northern Taiwan.
Chieh Chung (揭仲), a research fellow at the Association of Strategic Foresight, said Taiwan’s army has relied on aging US-made M60A3s and indigenously developed CM11 tanks.
These would be no match for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) advanced Type 05 amphibious fighting vehicles, he added.
Taiwan’s defense would be at a disadvantage without access to the latest generation of advanced tanks, Chieh said.
Lin Ying-yu (林穎佑), an assistant professor at Tamkang University’s Graduate Institute of International Affairs and Strategic Studies, said Taiwan’s existing tanks — M60A3s and CM11s — have been in service for three decades and would likely be unable to withstand PLA anti-armor firepower.
He said the addition of M1A2Ts would boost Taiwan’s defense.
Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the military-funded Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR), said that in the event of a PLA landing operation, Taiwan’s first line of defense would be anti-ship missiles, followed by domestic and US-made mobile artillery rocket systems, such as the Thunderbolt-2000 RT/LT-2000, M109 self-propelled howitzer and M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems.
Combat helicopters such as the AH-64E Apache attack helicopters stand at the third line of defense and coastal defense missiles serve as the fourth line, he said.
The fifth and final line of defense is comprised of tanks, including M1A2Ts and ground forces, he added.
Huang An-hao (黃恩浩), also a research fellow at INDSR, said M1A2Ts and other kinds of tanks play a crucial role in Taiwan’s joint air-ground operations, and would be deployed alongside mechanized infantry troops and with aviation and special forces.
Huang said the combination of M1A2T tanks on the ground and AH-64E helicopters in the air could double Taiwan’s capacity to eliminate invading forces from its beaches and shores.
The M1A2T tanks are equipped with 120mm smoothbore guns that can penetrate 850mm armor and withstand shells fired from most battle tanks.
Their average speed is also significantly faster than Taiwan’s current tanks. The combat vehicle also has a “hunter-killer capacity,” which means it can engage a target while also tracking another.
The armed forces would receive 42 more M1A2Ts next year and 28 in 2026, the Ministry of National Defense’s delivery schedule showed.
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
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
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
RSS