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| East Asia |
| Arms makers drool over Taiwan’s multi-billion-dollar arms spending spree |
| 2003-08-14 |
| The Taiwanese aren’t standing still. EFL Military equipment firms from the United States led the charge at an exhibition which opened here Thursday to get a slice of the multi-billion-dollar arms spending spree Taiwan is set to embark on over the next decade. Taiwan is set to speed up a 10-year arms buying spree worth 700 billion Taiwan dollars (20.33 billion US dollars) as the island attempts to rival China’s military modernization efforts. On the Taiwan military’s shopping list are eight conventional submarines, long-range early warning radar systems and Patriot PAC-3 anti-missile systems. Taiwan has deployed three batteries of PAC-2 Plus anti-missile weaponry to defend the populous Greater Taipei area, but Taiwanese government has decided to add more advanced PAC-3 to its arms inventory. In a report released this month, the Pentagon warned that China’s most immediate threat to Taiwan is a force of 450 short-range ballistic missiles in the Nanjing Military Region across the Taiwan straits from Taipei. 8 conventional subs. Now that would be very interesting. But my concern is that technologies sent to Tawain would eventually end up in Mainland China. What’s the standard line on this concern ? |
| Posted by:Domingo |
| #11 You won't need that many subs to cripple Chinese ports. The threat of high risk of losing shipping will make insurance rates skyrocket and deter trade very greatly. It would be extremely expensive for the Chinese to protect shipping. It is the old raiding strategy. |
| Posted by: buwaya 2003-8-14 8:58:29 PM |
| #10 so does this mean US shipyards that specialize in Nuke subs will lower themselves to build Diesel boats for the ROC? It isn't a case of elitism. It's more like acknowledging who's been paying for the goods over the past half-century There has been long standing opposition to conventionally-powered boats from the both the USN nuke community and Navy brass in general. The former's reason is obvious. The latter's opposition is varied and has some merit. Until recently, conventional boats weren't physically capable of meeting the tactical and strategic requirements for a USN fast-attack boat: following and engaging Soviet subs, and engaging in covert operations. Second (and quite probable): had a conventional boat available by US shipyards at any time over the past 40 years, Congress would have mandated their use, partly on 'pork', more on lower costs, with all the consequences that entails. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2003-8-14 3:57:11 PM |
| #9 I think it's a German design. They wouldn't sell them boats built in German yards because that would upset the Red Chinese. If anyone knows about U-boats, it's the Germans. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-8-14 3:15:44 PM |
| #8 The Taiwanese subs wouldn't be used to blockade Chinese ports -- too many ports, not enough subs. But they would be dandy for breaking a naval blockade of Taiwan. The conventional subs would be very quiet, able to operate in littorial zones, and are much cheaper to buy/operate. Put a well-trained crew in a first-class modern conventional sub against a (let's be charitable) less well-trained crew in a Soviet-design destroyer I've read elsewhere that the US at least has some requirements and safeguards on tech transfers in these situations. And it wouldn't be in the Taiwanese interest to let the technology slither over to the mainland. |
| Posted by: Steve White 2003-8-14 3:13:35 PM |
| #7 Kinda, It seems as if a Euro design will be built in American shipyards for the ROC. |
| Posted by: Domingo 2003-8-14 2:15:14 PM |
| #6 so does this mean US shipyards that specialize in Nuke subs will lower themselves to build Diesel boats for the ROC? |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2003-8-14 1:45:45 PM |
| #5 FYI: www.emeraldesigns.com/matchup/military.shtml |
| Posted by: Domingo 2003-8-14 12:56:50 PM |
| #4 IIUC when run on battery power, the current diesel subs are very quiet. Main drawback is in having to snorkel to run the diesel and charge the batteries. We need to make sure that Taiwan is armed as well as possible. Nothing will keep the peace across the straits as well as a Taiwan capable of defending itself |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-8-14 12:04:14 PM |
| #3 Not so. They don't have the speed, but they can be very quiet, and a modern one could ambush a maneuvering nuclear sub. The significance of the Taiwanese sub purchase is that with a significant number of submarines they could retaliate against a Chinese blockade, one of the more likely war scenarios, with their own blockade of China, using a technology that the Chinese could not effectively counter. |
| Posted by: buwaya 2003-8-14 11:38:59 AM |
| #2 I'm no naval tech, but I do not think that any conventional sub could be anything but a quick snack for the silent high tech nuke powered subs we deploy. |
| Posted by: Craig 2003-8-14 10:06:54 AM |
| #1 well at least this time we'd get more for the snatched tech info than just contributions to the Clinton/Gore re-election campaign |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-8-14 10:03:56 AM |