Taiwan To Spend $20.3 Billion On Weapons
In 10 Years

May 17, 2002

Taiwan plans to spend 700 billion Taiwan dollars (20.3 billion US) on arms over the next 10 years to ward off China's military threat.

The shopping list included diesel-engined submarines, long-range warning radar systems, attack helicopters and Patriot missiles, the China Times on Friday cited Defense Minister Tang Yao-ming as saying in parliament.

The planned weapon purchase was aimed to strenghten Taiwan's anti-aircraft and anti-ship capabilities against possible invasion from Beijing, the report said.

"Current missile systems can not meet our defense needs. There is especially a lack of anti-missile capability in the military," the paper quoted a defense report as saying.

Taiwan is striving to beef up its missile defense capabilities in a bid to fend off military threat from China, which has at least 300 ballistic missiles stationed along its southeast coast targeting the island.

Beijing views Taiwan as part of its territory to be reunified, by force, if necessary. The two sides split in 1949 following the end of a civil war.

The United States approved in April the most comprehensive arms package to Taiwan since 1992, including eight diesel-engined submarines, 12 P-3C submarine-hunting aircraft, and four Kidd-class frigates.

Washington has remained the largest arms supplier to the island despite its switch of diplomatic recognition to Beijing in 1979.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/020517/1/2po57.html