US technical assistance would help Taiwan upgrade its indigenous missile systems and could provide key technologies needed to develop a vertical launch system for warships, a defense official said on condition of anonymity.
Commenting on the Taiwan-US cooperative agreement in defense-related research, the official said that US technical assistance is expected to speed up the nation’s ongoing efforts to upgrade the Hsiung Feng, Tien Chien and Tien Kung families of missiles.
Moreover, US know-how could facilitate the military’s program to develop a vertical launch system for the navy’s planned next-generation frigate and the principal surface warfare combatant, which has struck a technical bottleneck, the official said.
Although US officials have suggested directly selling vertical launch systems, Taiwanese officials have expressed a preference to obtain the necessary technologies and develop a system locally through visits to US research facilities and joint research programs, the official said.
The Hsiung Feng family of missiles is Taiwan’s most important means of defense against the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s large warships and the nation’s main strategic deterrent, the official said.
The military fields three variants of Hsiung Feng missiles: the Hsiung Feng II subsonic anti-ship missile, the Hsiung Feng III supersonic anti-ship missile and the Hsiung Feng IIE land attack cruise missile, the official said.
While the military is confident in the missiles’ ability to strike Chinese ships and installations, the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology believes that it is both desirable and practicable to improve their effective range and precision, the official said.
The Tien Kung III surface-to-air missile is mainly used as an anti-aircraft weapon, but can also be used as a missile defense interceptor, the official said.
However, the missiles’ top operational altitude is deemed insufficient and the institute is focusing on boosting the maximum altitude of effective interception for its next round of upgrades, the official said.
The Tien Chien II air-to-air missile has met all of the military’s operational requirements and it is the main anti-fighter armament of Indigenous Defense Fighter jets, which are undergoing upgrades to carry more Tien Chien missiles, the official said.
The navy has adopted the naval variant of the Tien Chien II missile for use on all new Tuo Jiang-class corvettes slated for production, while the land-based variant has been fully tested and can be fielded, should the army decide to adopt the weapon, the official said.
A Vietnamese migrant worker on Thursday won the NT$12 million (US$383,590) jackpot on a scratch-off lottery ticket she bought from a lottery shop in Changhua County’s Puyan Township (埔鹽), Taiwan Lottery Co said yesterday. The lottery winner, who is in her 30s and married, said she would continue to work in Taiwan and send her winnings to her family in Vietnam to improve their life. More Taiwanese and migrant workers have flocked to the lottery shop on Sec 2 of Jhangshuei Road (彰水路) to share in the luck. The shop owner, surnamed Chen (陳), said that his shop has been open for just
Global bodies should stop excluding Taiwan for political reasons, President William Lai (賴清德) told Pope Francis in a letter, adding that he agrees war has no winners. The Vatican is one of only 12 countries to retain formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, and Taipei has watched with concern efforts by Beijing and the Holy See to improve ties. In October, the Vatican and China extended an accord on the appointment of Catholic bishops in China for four years, pointing to a new level of trust between the two parties. Lai, writing to the pope in response to the pontiff’s message on Jan. 1’s
TAKE BREAKS: A woman developed cystitis by refusing to get up to use the bathroom while playing mahjong for fear of disturbing her winning streak, a doctor said People should stand up and move around often while traveling or playing mahjong during the Lunar New Year holiday, as prolonged sitting can lead to cystitis or hemorrhoids, doctors said. Yuan’s General Hospital urologist Lee Tsung-hsi (李宗熹) said that he treated a 63-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙) who had been sitting motionless and holding off going to the bathroom, increasing her risk of bladder infection. Chao would drink beverages and not urinate for several hours while playing mahjong with friends and family, especially when she was on a winning streak, afraid that using the bathroom would ruin her luck, he said. She had
MUST REMAIN FREE: A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would lead to a global conflict, and if the nation blows up, the world’s factories would fall in a week, a minister said Taiwan is like Prague in 1938 facing Adolf Hitler; only if Taiwan remains free and democratic would the world be safe, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. The ministry on Saturday said Corriere della Sera is one of Italy’s oldest and most read newspapers, frequently covers European economic and political issues, and that Wu agreed to an interview with the paper’s senior political analyst Massimo Franco in Taipei on Jan. 3. The interview was published on Jan. 26 with the title “Taiwan like Prague in 1938 with Hitler,” the ministry
RSS