Taiwan is planning to spend NT$240 billion over the next five years on domestically produced arms like Wan Chien cruise missiles, Tien Kung anti-ballistic missiles, short-range Tien Chien and medium-range Hsiung Feng missiles.
Taiwan is planning to spend NT$240 billion (US$8.7 billion) over the next five years on domestically produced arms, including missiles capable of striking mainland China, as part of its efforts to strengthen its defences.
A special budget to buy several types of missiles – including Wan Chien (Ten Thousand Swords) cruise missiles, Tien Kung (Sky Bow) anti-ballistic missiles, short-range Tien Chien (Sky Sword) and medium-range Hsiung Feng (Brave Wind) missiles – was approved by the cabinet on Thursday, officials said. The money will also cover navy and coastguard vessels equipped with anti-ship and anti-aircraft weapons, as well as unmanned aerial vehicles.
The special budget supplements the NT$471.7 billion defence budget for next year and will need to be approved by the legislature, where the government has a large majority.
After the cabinet meeting, Premier Su Tseng-chang said the extra spending formed part of Taiwan’s “efforts to safeguard its national sovereignty and security, and the safety of its people”, as Beijing continued to ramp up pressure on Taiwan by sending fighter jets and warships on exercises close to the island. He said the spending also reflected the island’s efforts to upgrade its domestic defence industry, adding that this could also help promote economic development.
Some of the funds would be used to buy missiles from the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, Taiwan’s leading weapons maker, and help boost its missile manufacturing ability, defence ministry officials said.
The institute has been testing new long-range missiles off its southern and eastern coasts, and military observers say it is likely they will be able to hit targets far into the Chinese mainland.
According to Tsai Shih-ying, a legislator from the ruling DPP who sits on the defence affairs committee, some of the additional funding would be used to buy 10 more Ta Jiang stealth missile corvettes after the navy commissioned its first one last week. He said the ships, produced by the Lung Teh Shipbuilding Company, would be handed over to the navy by 2027.
The multi-mission Ta Jiang, dubbed the “carrier killer” because of its ability to strike larger warships, is designed to play a key role in the island’s asymmetric warfare strategy to counter the much larger force the People’s Liberation Army can muster.
Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory and has not renounced the use of force to return it to its control. It has ramped up the pressure against the island since President Tsai Ing-wen was elected in 2016 and refused to accept the one-China principle.
Source: SCMP
