Defense specialists are warning that China’s Beidou (北斗) satellite-based navigation system, which began providing services on Tuesday, could pose a long-term threat to Taiwan’s security and they are calling for countermeasures.
Xinhua news agency announced on Tuesday that the Beidou (“Compass”) Navigation Satellite System had begun providing initial positioning, navigation and timing services for China and the surrounding areas. Hoping to diminish its reliance on the US’ global positioning systems (GPS), China began work on the Beidou system in 2000.
Ten satellites which form the Beidou “constellation” have been launched since 2007, with six more launches scheduled for next year to provide extended coverage for the Asia-Pacific region. By 2020, the Beidou constellation will comprise 35 satellites.
At present, only the US and Russia, with its Glonass constellation of 24 satellites, have fully operational satellite-based navigation services, with the EU’s Galileo expected to enter full service in 2013.
According to an October 2008 article by Jane’s Defence Weekly, China’s involvement in the Galileo project might have benefited the development of the Beidou constellation, especially dual-use technology used by the EU consortium.
Although China claims Beidou will provide commercial services, such as mapping, fishery, transport, meteorology and telecommunications, the system could also be of great assistance to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
The US military relies primarily on GPS satellite navigation data for military vehicles and precision-guided munitions and the US Air Force operates the more than 30 satellites on which the GPS is based.
Once it becomes fully operational, Beidou will provide tracking and imaging at a resolution to within 10m, greatly enhancing the PLA’s ability to launch “surgical” missile attacks using precision-guided munitions. It could also provide guidance for unmanned vehicles, or “drones.”
China Satellite Navigation Office director Ran Chengqi (冉承其) said the system is also intended for military use, adding that it would enhance the tracking abilities of the PLA by 100 to 1,000 times and reduce military spending.
Arthur Ding (丁樹範), a professor of international relations at National Chengchi University, said as the Chinese system represents a long-term threat to Taiwan, the latter should develop counterattack technology that can disrupt the Beidou system’s “ears and eyes.”
Taiwan does not need to destroy China’s weapons-guidance satellites, Ting said, adding that disruptive technology could be developed at relatively low cost.
Other measures adopted over the years are multi-layered air defense architecture through the acquisition and development of early-warning systems, radar and missile interceptors, such as the US-made Patriot and the Tien Kung I and II “Sky Bow.”
Taiwan has also been upgrading its “Skyguard” short-range air defense system by switching to Advanced Hit Efficiency And Destruction munitions, which are ideal to shoot down precision-guided munitions and unmanned aerial vehicles.
At a regular press conference in Beijing yesterday, Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Yang Yi (楊毅) sought to assuage fears in Taiwan of potential military uses for the Beidou system, saying those were “unnecessary” and “misplaced,” adding that the navigation system “would only enhance the well-being of compatriots on both sides” of the Taiwan Strait.
China in recent years has also launched a series of “scientific” satellites that defense watchers believe could also have military applications. In several cases, China has never made public the results of the scientific experiments purportedly conducted by the satellites.
Constellations of Shijian orbiters could be used for anything from naval signals reconnaissance to time difference of arrival assessments or geolocation to track objects over large expanses of territory, such as carrier battle groups at sea.
Additional reporting by CNA and Bloomberg
EUROPEAN TARGETS: The planned Munich center would support TSMC’s European customers to design high-performance, energy-efficient chips, an executive said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday said that it plans to launch a new research-and-development (R&D) center in Munich, Germany, next quarter to assist customers with chip design. TSMC Europe president Paul de Bot made the announcement during a technology symposium in Amsterdam on Tuesday, the chipmaker said. The new Munich center would be the firm’s first chip designing center in Europe, it said. The chipmaker has set up a major R&D center at its base of operations in Hsinchu and plans to create a new one in the US to provide services for major US customers,
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday said that it would redesign the written portion of the driver’s license exam to make it more rigorous. “We hope that the exam can assess drivers’ understanding of traffic rules, particularly those who take the driver’s license test for the first time. In the past, drivers only needed to cram a book of test questions to pass the written exam,” Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) told a news conference at the Taoyuan Motor Vehicle Office. “In the future, they would not be able to pass the test unless they study traffic regulations
GAINING STEAM: The scheme initially failed to gather much attention, with only 188 cards issued in its first year, but gained popularity amid the COVID-19 pandemic Applications for the Employment Gold Card have increased in the past few years, with the card having been issued to a total of 13,191 people from 101 countries since its introduction in 2018, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday. Those who have received the card have included celebrities, such as former NBA star Dwight Howard and Australian-South Korean cheerleader Dahye Lee, the NDC said. The four-in-one Employment Gold Card combines a work permit, resident visa, Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) and re-entry permit. It was first introduced in February 2018 through the Act Governing Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及雇用法),
‘A SURVIVAL QUESTION’: US officials have been urging the opposition KMT and TPP not to block defense spending, especially the special defense budget, an official said The US plans to ramp up weapons sales to Taiwan to a level exceeding US President Donald Trump’s first term as part of an effort to deter China as it intensifies military pressure on the nation, two US officials said on condition of anonymity. If US arms sales do accelerate, it could ease worries about the extent of Trump’s commitment to Taiwan. It would also add new friction to the tense US-China relationship. The officials said they expect US approvals for weapons sales to Taiwan over the next four years to surpass those in Trump’s first term, with one of them saying
RSS