Taiwan Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

Taiwan, faced with a more aggressive China, is talking a good game of ramping up the island’s security with its own submarines, buying sophisticated fighter aircraft and exploring asymmetric defenses, but President Tsai Ing-wen’s administration has not made the hard choices to raise a defense budget that already is being consumed by higher personnel costs,

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“It’s a judgment call” on how much to spend on security and how to spend it, Ryan Hass, a fellow at the Center for East Asia Policy Studies at the John L. Thornton China Center said at the event at the Brookings Institution. But as a percentage of a flat-lined defense budget with an increasing personnel topline, “this is where the questions of submarines, F-35s comes up” for future defense needs are going unmet.

Bonnie Glaser, of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, added, while “there continues to be a very close relationship” between the United States and Taiwanese militaries, there is a “lack of convergence” over basic questions.

Using submarines as an example, she said there is no meeting of the mind in Washington and Taipei over the size, range or mission of a new class of attack boats. She added discussions about revitalizing the submarine force have been going on since the early 2000s.

No U.S. shipyard builds diesel-electric submarines, but under current security arrangements, Washington is involved in these kinds of arms development and buying.

Adding to the complications, “it’s not a short timeline [to build a submarine even if there were an agreement on how to proceed] and the PRC would know” when the vessel was expected to be delivered, Richard Bush, a senior fellow at the Thornton Center, said. Further, “in a war situation [in the Taiwan Straits or near Taiwan], I suspect the U.S. Navy would prefer to operate alone” to avoid the possibility of firing on one of Taipei’s subs.

One hopeful sign on Taiwan security comes from a shift of public opinion on the island about how to view China.

While Taiwan’s “population is more aware of and willing to respond to the military threat” from Beijing, there are lingering questions over their resolve among Americans to defend Taiwan, Shelley Rigger, a political science professor at Davidson College, said. “We should really be paying closing attention to the resolve issues” because “they are very different from not so long ago.”

Bush said, “Once we define our relations to Taiwan … let’s act in our own interests.”

As President Tsai Ing-wen’s administration completes its second year in office, Robert Wang, a senior policy advisor at Covington & Burling, said, China’s goal and intention is unchanged as it ratchets up pressure on Taiwan economically — in information technology where Taipei has a lead and through bomber and fighter flights circling the island. Through its economic clout, China is bearing down on other nations to break diplomatic and trade ties with Taipei.

The policy is: “reunification, forcefully or not.”

The “softer” approach to reunification specifically includes enticements to the young to leave Taiwan for higher education and more job opportunities in growing technical fields, Wang and others said. Youth unemployment and a stagnant industrial base are challenges the government is slowly addressing, but do not yield themselves to quick solutions, Rigger said.

To further isolate Taiwan from the world community, party and government leaders in Beijing are blasting almost every move the United States or any nation, international body or business makes toward Taiwan as being “anti-Chinese” and denying the “One China policy” agreed to by Washington and the United Nations.

Beijing is insisting,

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“Taiwan.”

So far, a number of American airlines and other companies are not complying with the demand.

In short, Beijing is trying to erase an independent identity for Taiwan.

“I wonder if there was anything we’d be doing [besides] dance troupes, cultural things” that wouldn’t draw out that “you’re anti-Chinese” response, he added.

Tsai’s party in the past has favored a sovereign status for Taiwan in contrast to the KMT Party with its roots on the mainland. Her party also has a strong appeal among the younger population of the island, the very base Beijing is trying to attract.

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Taiwan F-16 fighter jet crashes, killing pilot

Taiwan's air force said the pilot of an F-16 fighter jet was killed after his plane crashed on Monday (Jun 4) in the mountains at the start of annual live-fire drills.

The single-seat jet disappeared off the radar over mountainous terrain in the northeastern county of Keelung at 1:43pm, 34 minutes after take off, the air force said.

The defence ministry, local police and fire department had conducted land and air searches for the 31-year-old pilot, Major Wu Yen-ting, for hours before discovering the wreckage of the plane on Monday evening.

"It is confirmed that the pilot has died in the line of duty ... a commission will be set up later to investigate and clarify the cause of the incident," the air force said in a statement.

President Tsai Ing-wen and Defence Minister Yen De-fa expressed their condolences and pledged compensation to the pilot's family.

Wu was also involved in the last F-16 accident in Taiwan, in 2013, when he parachuted to safety following a suspected mechanical failure.
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The five-day "Han Guang" (Han Glory) drill kicked off Monday with troops practising thwarting a Chinese "invasion" by simulating surprise coastal assaults to reflect increased military threats from Beijing.

Although Taiwan is a self-ruling democracy, it has never formally declared independence from the mainland and Beijing still sees it as a renegade province to be brought back into the fold, by force if necessary.

Taiwan's defence ministry has said the main goal of the drill is to counter any future Chinese military mission to the island.

As relations have soured between Beijing and Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen, China has increasingly flexed its military muscles.

It held live-fire drills in April in the Taiwan Strait - the narrow waterway separating the Chinese mainland from Taiwan - following weeks of naval manoeuvres in the area.

In November, Taiwan's air force temporarily grounded all its Mirage jets as it searched for a pilot who went missing while conducting a training mission in one of the French-made fighters. Both pilot and plane are yet to be found.

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Equation said:

My condolences to his family

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Equation said:

for wasting his life in the defense for a undeserving regime that continues to take the Taiwanese people and Chinese island hostage just to keep the fragile status quo.

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Equation said:

My condolences to his family for wasting his life in the defense for a undeserving regime that continues to take the Taiwanese people and Chinese island hostage just to keep the fragile status quo.

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The United States is considering sending a warship through the Taiwan Strait, U.S. officials say, in a move that could provoke a sharp reaction from Beijing at a time when Sino-U.S. ties are under pressure from trade disputes and the North Korean nuclear crisis.

A U.S. warship passage, should it happen, could be seen in Taiwan as a fresh sign of support by President Donald Trump after a series of Chinese military drills around the self-ruled island. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory.

U.S. officials told Reuters that the United States had already examined plans for an aircraft carrier passage once this year but ultimately did not pursue them, perhaps because of concerns about upsetting China.

The last time a U.S. aircraft carrier transited the Taiwan Strait was in 2007, during the administration of George W. Bush, and some U.S. military officials believe a carrier transit is overdue.

Another, less provocative option would be resuming the periodic, but still infrequent, passages by other U.S. Navy ships through the Strait, the last of which was in July 2017.

The Pentagon declined comment on any potential future operations and it was unclear how soon a passage might take place.

Speaking in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying urged the United States to prudently handle the Taiwan issue so as to avoid harming bilateral ties and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait region.

“We have repeatedly emphasized that the Taiwan issue is the most important and sensitive core issue in the China-U.S. relationship,” she told a daily news briefing on Tuesday.

Taiwan’s Defense Ministry declined to comment, saying the news had yet to be verified.

Trump, who broke protocol as president-elect by taking a phone call from Taiwan’s president in 2016, has toned down his rhetoric about Taiwan in recent months as he seeks China’s aid in the nuclear standoff with North Korea.

The United States and China are also trying to find their way out of a major trade dispute that has seen the world’s two economic heavyweights threaten tit-for-tat tariffs on goods worth up to $150 billion each.

China has alarmed Taiwan by ramping up military exercises this year, including flying bombers and other military aircraft around the island and sending its carrier through the narrow Taiwan Strait separating it from Taiwan.

“They’re turning up the heat,” a fourth U.S. official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to describe the U.S. view of Chinese activities around Taiwan.

Separately, it now appears unlikely the United States will send top officials to a June 12 dedication ceremony for the new American Institute in Taiwan, America’s de facto embassy in Taiwan. Washington does not have formal ties with Taipei.

U.S. officials told Reuters that the date clashes with the planned June 12 summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but added there will be another opportunity to commemorate the institute’s unveiling in September.

CASE-BY-CASE ARMS SALES

Since taking office, Trump has approved a $1.4 billion arms sale to Taiwan and angered Beijing by signing legislation encouraging visits by senior U.S. officials to Taiwan. Trump also named John Bolton, known as a strong Taiwan supporter, as his national security adviser.

The fourth U.S. official told Reuters Washington aimed to change the way it approaches arms sales requests from Taiwan to address them on a case-by-case basis, as opposed to bundling them together.

Rupert Hammond-Chambers at the U.S.-Taiwan Business Council trade association said moving away from bundling - a practice in place for a decade - would be better for Taipei’s defense needs, treating it more like a regular security partner.

“We get into difficulty when we treat Taiwan differently, which opens the door for the politicization of the (arms sales) process,” Hammond-Chambers said.

Military experts say the balance of power between Taiwan and China has shifted decisively in China’s favor in recent years, and China could easily overwhelm the island unless U.S. forces came quickly to Taiwan’s aid.

The United States is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself, but it is unclear whether Washington would want to be dragged into war with China over the island.

Asked about U.S. obligations to Taiwan, Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Logan noted Washington has sold Taiwan more than $15 billion in weaponry since 2010.

“We have a vital interest in upholding the current rules-based international order, which features a strong, prosperous, and democratic Taiwan,” Logan said.

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India, Japan to Submit Design Proposals for Taiwan’s New Indigenous Submarine
Indian and Japanese defense contractors, next to two European and two U.S. firms, are submitting design proposals for Taiwan’s future submarine fleet.

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Six companies have reportedly submitted design proposals for the Republic of China Navy’s (ROCN) future fleet of domestically-designed and produced diesel-electric attack submarines (SSK). This includes two European and two U.S. firms, as well as an Indian company and a Japanese defense contractor,

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to local media reports.

The Indian team that submitted a design proposal is drawn up from naval engineers working on the Indian Navy’s SSK fleet, which includes the Sindhughosh-class (Russian-made Kilo-class), Shishumar-class (German Type 209), and the new Kalvari-class (Scorpene-class) boats, whereas the Japanese team consists of retired engineers from Mitsubishi and Kawasaki Heavy Industries — Japan’s two principal sub makers.

Interestingly, the Japanese team submitted its proposal at the special request of a U.S. defense firm, which has contracted them to solicit their expertise on diesel-electric submarine designs. According to the media report, the Indian team’s proposal includes design elements found on nuclear-powered attack submarines. Taiwan Ministry of Defense officials in conjunction with U.S. defense contractors are reportedly in the process of evaluating the design proposals.

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