The military expects to receive the first two of four MQ-9B "SkyGuardian" drones it ordered from the US in the third quarter of next year as scheduled, an air force general said today.
During a Legislative Yuan session, air force Chief of Staff Lee Ching-jan (李慶然) said that production of the next-generation, US-made drones was proceeding as planned.
Photo from the General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Web site
According to the military's budget proposal for this fiscal year, the remaining two MQ-9B SkyGuardian drones would be delivered in 2027.
In a 2020 statement announcing the sale, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency said the MQ-9Bs would provide Taiwan with "intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, target acquisition, and counter-land, counter-sea and anti-submarine strike capabilities."
Taiwan's military is also set to receive 14 M136 Volcano mine-dispensing systems and 28 Abrams tanks from the US next year.
Lee was responding to concerns raised by lawmakers about delayed US weapons shipments to Taiwan.
Last month, the air force said it would not receive all 66 F-16 Block 70 jets from the US by the end of next year, as originally scheduled, due to labor shortages and supply chain disruptions.
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
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The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
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