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Delivery Backlog
As the number of deals on the table prove, it is not that the U.S. is not
keen on providing military aid to Taiwan; it is just that the weapons
are taking too long to be delivered. Supply chain issued triggered by
the pandemic has slowed down transfer of arms to such an extent
that the U.S. is yet to deliver US$14 billion worth of weapons that the
island has purchased over the last few years. Among the backlogged
deals are the country’s US$8 billion purchase of 66 F-16 fighter jets,
the US$2.37 billion deal for Harpoon Block II surface-launched mis-
siles, US$1 billion in air-launched SLAM-ER missiles, and a US$620
million contract to replace components of the Patriot missile system.
The delivery of asymmetric weapons such as Stinger and Javelin
missiles, heavyweight torpedoes, high-mobility artillery rocket sys-
tems, Paladin howitzers, and MS-110 reconnaissance pods have
also been delayed.
In order to speed up transfer of weapons to the island, the U.S.
has included key provisions of the Taiwan Enhanced Resilience Act © TAIWAN AIR FORCE
(TERA), formerly called the Taiwan Policy Act, in the National Defence
Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY23. TERA enhances the U.S.-Taiwan and bullying across the Taiwan strait, in the
defence partnership by establishing a specific defence modern- information space and in the economic domain
ization programme for the island. The “Taiwan Security Assistance are upsetting the status quo and destabilizing
Initiative” in TERA provides around US$4.5 billion over four years, the Indo-Pacific,” says Senate Foreign Relations
and up to US$10 billion in security assistance over five years, to Committee Chairman Bob Menendez. “The
modernize Taiwan’s security capabilities to deter and, if necessary, China challenge has become the most signif-
defeat Chinese aggression. The legislation also declares Taiwan a icant national security issues our nation has
major non-NATO ally, a designation that helps speed up arms sales,
besides providing the legal backing for the U.S. to establish a war faced in a generation.”
reserve stockpile for the island that consists primarily of munitions.
James Timbie, a former State Department offi-
The U.S. will help provide Taiwan armed forces training and expe- cial, and James O. Ellis Jr., a retired U.S. Navy
dite weapons deliveries, said U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee admiral, agree. “Distributed, survivable, and
Chair Michael McCaul, while speaking in Taipei during a visit in April. affordable defences could greatly complicate
“Peace through strength is real, and that’s why we need to harden an attempt to invade Taiwan by the People’s
Taiwan,” he added, McCaul also advocated rearranging the order Liberation Army,” the two wrote in an article.
of the arms deliveries after an assessment of high-risk and high- Taiwan needs “a large number of small things”
threat areas. for distributed defence, they added. “Effective
short-range anti-air and anti-ship defences
As part of its efforts to ensure combat readiness, Taipei is acceler- could increase the risk that an invasion attempt
ating the development of its indigenous weapons programme. The would fail or be substantially delayed either in
island is investing US$4 billion to upgrade its 141 existing F-16 fighters, the water or on the island.”
which were purchased in the 1990s, to the latest F-16V specifica-
tions. The first upgraded aircraft entered service in 2021. Taiwan has Taiwan, which produces its own deterrent weap-
also initiated a US$16 billion programme to produce eight diesel ons, including minelayer ships, air defence missile
submarines. Construction of the first unit began in November 2020. systems and antiship cruise missiles, needs to
move away from “expensive, high-profile con-
Meanwhile, industrial partnerships involving defence contractors in ventional systems,” Timbie and Ellis Jr. said,
the U.S. and Taiwan look set to flourish. At the Taiwan-US Defence advocating a “porcupine strategy” for the island.
Industry Forum that will take place in Taipei on May 3, weapon “Taiwan’s expensive conventional platforms are
makers from the two countries will discuss possibilities of co-pro- useful to counter gray-zone incursions and they
ducing weapons. According to reports, Taiwan is interested in joining have political and industrial benefits as well. But
hands with the U.S. for the co-production of airborne, surface, and they are unlikely to survive the initial strikes of
subsea drones, as well as different kinds of ammunition. About 25 any cross-strait invasion. Implementation of a
U.S. defence contractors are expected to attend the conference. strategy that includes a large number of small
things could leverage Taiwan’s geographic and
technological advantages, exploit the People’s
The Right Strategy Liberation Army’s vulnerabilities, and help to
“China’s rapid military build-up, with new technologies and weapons deter an attempt to take the island by force,”
that could be used against Taiwan, and its continued aggression they added.
ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY APRIL-MAY 2023 | 35