The US on Friday authorized the sale of Integrated Battle Command Systems (IBCS) — an integrated air defense architecture — to Denmark, a move potentially clearing the way for their export to Taiwan, sources familiar with the matter said on Saturday.
The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) has approved the foreign military sale of IBCS with Indirect Fire Protection Capability and related equipment for an estimated US$3 billion to Denmark, it said in a notice.
This includes 24 environmentally sealed magazines compatible with AIM-9X heat-seeking missiles, eight Indirect Fire Protection Capability Increment 2 launchers, and two IBCS units with radar systems, network relays and operation centers, in addition to related services, the agency said.
Photo courtesy of the Norwegian Ministry of Defense
In Taipei, military officials commenting on condition of anonymity said that as Taiwan and the US have already had preliminary discussions and reached a consensus, US sources suggested Taiwan is likely to be the next country Washington prepares to sell the IBCS to, due to the reliance of Taiwanese air defense systems on this equipment.
Patriot Advanced Capabilities-2, Patriot Advanced Capabilities-3, National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS), Tien Kung II (天弓, Sky Bow), Tien Kung III and Tien Kung IV are among the nation’s IBCS-dependent air defense systems, they said.
The IBCS is a linchpin technology for President William Lai’s (賴清德) proposed “T-Dome” integrated air defense system intended to counter China’s formidable cruise missile and ballistic missile arsenal, they said.
The proposed air defense network should be capable of engaging missiles, fighter jets, strategic bombers and uncrewed aerial vehicles operating at varied airspeeds and altitudes, the sources said.
The T-Dome, similarly to the air defense concept being implemented in Denmark, is designed to establish a unified command and control to enable optimized allocation of fires by all air defense missiles defending the homeland, they said.
This means the air defense weapons selected to engage the threat would be the best match to its distance and performance, ensuring efficient use of ammunition and successful interdiction, they said.
Taiwan and Denmark both opted to buy NASAMS launchers, which are designed for the AIM-120, a medium range radar-guided missile for antimissile defense, in addition to shorter-ranged AIM-9X and Stinger missiles to knock out mortar shells, artillery rockets and drones, they said.
The price listed in the DSCA notice suggests the per-unit cost for the IBCS would be about US$530 million.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was sentenced to six months in prison, commutable to a fine, by the New Taipei District Court today for contravening the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法) in a case linked to an alleged draft-dodging scheme. Wang allegedly paid NT$3.6 million (US$114,380) to an illegal group to help him evade mandatory military service through falsified medical documents, prosecutors said. He transferred the funds to Chen Chih-ming (陳志明), the alleged mastermind of a draft-evasion ring, although he lost contact with him as he was already in detention on fraud charges, they said. Chen is accused of helping a
SECURITY: Starlink owner Elon Musk has taken pro-Beijing positions, and allowing pro-China companies to control Taiwan’s critical infrastructure is risky, a legislator said Starlink was reluctant to offer services in Taiwan because of the nation’s extremely high penetration rates in 4G and 5G services, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said yesterday. The ministry made the comments at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, which reviewed amendments to Article 36 of the Telecommunications Management Act (電信管理法). Article 36 bans foreigners from holding more than 49 percent of shares in public telecommunications networks, while shares foreigners directly and indirectly hold are also capped at 60 percent of the total, unless specified otherwise by law. The amendments, sponsored by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ko
The eastern extension of the Taipei MRT Red Line could begin operations as early as late June, the Taipei Department of Rapid Transit Systems said yesterday. Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said it is considering offering one month of free rides on the new section to mark its opening. Construction progress on the 1.4km extension, which is to run from the current terminal Xiangshan Station to a new eastern terminal, Guangci/Fengtian Temple Station, was 90.6 percent complete by the end of last month, the department said in a report to the Taipei City Council's Transportation Committee. While construction began in October 2016 with an
NON-RED SUPPLY: Boosting the nation’s drone industry is becoming increasingly urgent as China’s UAV dominance could become an issue in a crisis, an analyst said Taiwan’s drone exports to Europe grew 41.7-fold from 2024 to last year, with demand from Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggression the most likely driver of growth, a study showed. The Institute for Democracy, Society and Emerging Technology (DSET) in a statement on Wednesday said it found that many of Taiwan’s uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) sales were from Poland and the Czech Republic. These countries likely transferred the drones to Ukraine to aid it in its fight against the Russian invasion that started in 2022, it said. Despite the gains, Taiwan is not the dominant drone exporter to these markets, ranking second and fourth
RSS