林中斌 部落格 / Blog Chong-Pin Lin

Taiwan's Test of Missiles Falls Short
 

林 中斌

 

聯合報 名人堂╱2011.02.11 02:14 am

 

By ARIES POON And FANNY LIU

 

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703954004576089404084137200.html accessed January 19, 2011

 

TAIPEI—Nearly a third of the missiles fired by the Taiwanese military during an air-defense drill Tuesday missed their targets, raising concerns about the island's defense capabilities as China's military might in the region rises.

 

The Ministry of National Defense said that six out of 19 missiles failed to hit their targets at a test staged at the Jiupeng base in Taiwan's southeastern coast. President Ma Ying-jeou, who presided over the drill, said that he wasn't satisfied with the misses and that "there is still room for improvement."

    The first major missile test in Taiwan for almost a decade takes place amid tension with China. Video courtesy of Reuters.

 

    A Taiwanese defense official said four of the failed missiles were U.S.-made, while one was French and one was Taiwanese. The official said it was unclear why the missiles failed and further inquiry would be needed.

 

    The Pentagon declined to comment on the missile failures, referring all questions to the government of Taiwan.

 

    The exercise in Jiupeng, which appears to have been intended to show off the island's defense capabilities after some domestic criticism directed at Mr. Ma's government, came just ahead of China President Hu Jintao's visit to the U.S. and about a week after China's unveiling of its J-20 stealth aircraft. Mr. Ma stressed that the drill was a "routine" exercise and "is completely not related" to Mr. Hu's visit to Washington or any sort of arms race.

 

    Chong Pin Lin, former deputy defense minister and now a professor at Taiwan's Tamkang University, said that Taiwan has lost its lead in air fighters and anti-submarine warfare capabilities to China over the past decade.

 

    "The military balance across the strait has been tilted," he said. "Taiwan needs some more capabilities to make Beijing think twice before invading Taiwan," he said.

Reuters

 

The Taiwanese military launching a U.S.-made missile during an air-defense drill Tuesday.

 

        In a bid to shore up its defense systems, Taiwan in recent years has bought defensive weapons from the U.S. despite China's strong protest. The island also said last month it had begun mass production of long-range cruise missiles that could reach mainland Chinese cities.

 

        Relations between Taiwan and China, once enemies, have been warming since 2008, when the Kuomintang became the ruling party of Taiwan and took initiatives to launch a series of policies and trade accords to bring the two economies closer together.

 

        But China's government, which claims Taiwan as part of its territory, hasn't ruled out the possibility of using military force if the self-governed island moves to formalize its independence. China continues to aim more than 1,000 ballistic missiles at the island, according to U.S. and Taiwanese officials