National Security Bureau (NSB) Director Tsai Der-sheng (蔡得勝) confirmed that China had deployed a “new” missile unit near Taiwan, a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmaker said yesterday.
Tsai described the new unit, located in Guangdong Province, while replying to queries last week by KMT Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方).
“The unit, carrying the code number 96166 ... is indeed a new unit, probably a new ballistic missile brigade,” a statement by Lin quoted Tsai as saying, without providing further details.
Chinese media and US defense analysts have been reporting on the unit for several months, from which more information can be gleaned.
Xinhua news agency on July 28 last year reported the construction of facilities for a new Second Artillery missile brigade, known as the 96166 Unit, in Shaoguan, Guangdong Province, which was already home to the 96169 short-range ballistic missile unit in Meizhou.
Referring to reports, the Project 2049 Institute said in August last year that the new unit could have “unique capabilities that could complicate the strategic calculus in Asia and the South China Sea in particular.”
The new unit, which was initially collocated with an existing DF-21 brigade in Chizhou, Anhui Province, appears to have extensive experience with the 600km-range DF-11A short-range ballistic missile. The brigade could be a candidate for a new medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM) such as the DF-16 or the DF-21C surface-to-surface MRBM, the institute said.
The NSB chief caused tremors in defense circles in March when he told the legislature that the DF-16, about which little was known at that time, had completed testing and was beginning deployment. Tsai also claimed that a growing number of missiles in the Chinese arsenal now came with multiple submunitions.
Reports also say that the new unit could be a candidate for the DF-21D anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM), also known as the “aircraft carrier killer.”
“If an ASBM is successful in passing the necessary design reviews and a sufficient sensor network is in place, the Shaoguan brigade could become the first in the PLA [People’s Liberation Army] to field a lethal capability against moving targets at sea out to a range of 1,500km to 2,000km or more from launch sites,” the institute said.
In recent years, the PLA has continued to increase its deployment of ballistic missile units opposite Taiwan, while improving their accuracy. Experts estimate that China currently has more than 1,600 missiles aimed at Taiwan, mostly deployed in Fujian and -Jiangxi provinces in the southeast.
Lin said China’s continued expansion of its railway network has also helped boost the flexibility of its missile arm.
The extensive rail network enables the weapons to be transported swiftly to coastal areas when needed and even to be launched from railway cars.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY AFP
Death row inmate Huang Lin-kai (黃麟凱), who was convicted for the double murder of his former girlfriend and her mother, is to be executed at the Taipei Detention Center tonight, the Ministry of Justice announced. Huang, who was a military conscript at the time, was convicted for the rape and murder of his ex-girlfriend, surnamed Wang (王), and the murder of her mother, after breaking into their home on Oct. 1, 2013. Prosecutors cited anger over the breakup and a dispute about money as the motives behind the double homicide. This is the first time that Minister of Justice Cheng Ming-chien (鄭銘謙) has
Ferry operators are planning to provide a total of 1,429 journeys between Taiwan proper and its offshore islands to meet increased travel demand during the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, the Maritime and Port Bureau said yesterday. The available number of ferry journeys on eight routes from Saturday next week to Feb. 2 is expected to meet a maximum transport capacity of 289,414 passengers, the bureau said in a news release. Meanwhile, a total of 396 journeys on the "small three links," which are direct ferries connecting Taiwan's Kinmen and Lienchiang counties with China's Fujian Province, are also being planned to accommodate
TRANSPORT CONVENIENCE: The new ticket gates would accept a variety of mobile payment methods, and buses would be installed with QR code readers for ease of use New ticketing gates for the Taipei metro system are expected to begin service in October, allowing users to swipe with cellphones and select credit cards partnered with Taipei Rapid Transit Corp (TRTC), the company said on Tuesday. TRTC said its gates in use are experiencing difficulty due to their age, as they were first installed in 2007. Maintenance is increasingly expensive and challenging as the manufacturing of components is halted or becoming harder to find, the company said. Currently, the gates only accept EasyCard, iPass and electronic icash tickets, or one-time-use tickets purchased at kiosks, the company said. Since 2023, the company said it
BITTERLY COLD: The inauguration ceremony for US president-elect Donald Trump has been moved indoors due to cold weather, with the new venue lacking capacity A delegation of cross-party lawmakers from Taiwan, led by Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), for the inauguration of US president-elect Donald Trump, would not be able to attend the ceremony, as it is being moved indoors due to forecasts of intense cold weather in Washington tomorrow. The inauguration ceremony for Trump and US vice president-elect JD Vance is to be held inside the Capitol Rotunda, which has a capacity of about 2,000 people. A person familiar with the issue yesterday said although the outdoor inauguration ceremony has been relocated, Taiwan’s legislative delegation has decided to head off to Washington as scheduled. The delegation
RSS