Originally appeared at ZeroHedge
Taiwan’s military has made an extremely rare admission that could hasten China’s efforts to bring the democratic island to heel. A top official acknowledged on Thursday that Taiwan has initiated mass production of long-range missiles capable of striking mainland China.
In addition to one missile type now in production, the military said three others are currently in development. The information which is sure to raise alarm bells in Beijing came during testimony by Taiwan’s Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng in front of parliament.
While taking lawmakers’ questions he indicated that putting in place a long-range attack capability is seen as “a priority” by the nation’s armed forces amid a broader modernization and overhaul of its defenses – efforts backed by the United States.
The key part of the exchange was captured by Reuters as follows:
“We hope it is long-range, accurate, and mobile,” he said, adding research on such weapons by the state-owned National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology had “never stopped.”
Standing next to Chiu, the institute’s deputy director Leng Chin-hsu said one long-range, land-based missile had already entered production, with three other long-range missiles in development.
Leng said it was “not convenient” for him to provide details on how far the missile could fly.
The region is already on edge given what are now weekly and almost daily incursions by Chinese aerial patrols. In the past months this has sometimes included a half-dozen Chinese H-6K strategic bombers or more making aggressive maneuvers in breach of Taiwan’s defense zones.
The United States as the main supplier of arms to the island has also been condemned by Beijing for violating the ‘One China’ status quo, particularly because of the series of major weapons sales approvals during the last six months of the Trump administration.
While Biden said Thursday during his first presidential press conference that he “doesn’t want confrontation” with China he’s done little in terms of rolling pack ‘confrontational’ Trump policies – but quite the opposition – he’s arguably actually increased the pressure.
Will the US stop Taiwan from doing this, they want Iran to give up their long range missiles?
“They want” many things but won’t stop Iran.
I agree about Iran, the people are a proud people and will not give up any of their defensive weapons. They know if they did that the US would attack in a minute to destroy it like the US did with Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yugoslavia and the list goes on!
Unlike other arab countries in the region, Iran has a spine and long term goals. They know patience is golden. Currently USA couldn’t attack them without suffering losses and the US national support for another war is very low at this momment. Also blocking oil transit could transform the entire Gulf region into a huge war theatre. Without NATO intervention, Houthis would take Mecca.
So Taiwan is a rogue nation…? 😕
Unlike mainland, they are a nation.
No they are not by the UN and the rest of the world. Even the US and EU signed the charter in the UN that Taiwan is part of Mainland China, but since the US breaks all their agreements and signed documents does that make them an independent nation? If so it is the right for Mainland China to attack and occupy its providence if Taiwan does it!
China has like 40 languages. Maybe the notion of nation is not clear for you.
The US has the same amount because of Immigrates so I consider it a country. I’m not going into semantics what a country is, it’s on the map as one, it has a single government for one. The UN treats it as one and is one of the five nations in the Security Council that can veto, so to me it is one
No, no. China has Official 40 languages, in reality they are more. And the population is not mixed like in USA, they are regional languages, like any medieval empire.
Donald Moore you are talking to a man which call himself “blyat”, which means “prostitute”! He could represents his nation U(k)rine, which is actually the prostitute of the US 😁 but anyway, what do you expect? He can just vomit something against Russia/China in order to lick the @ss of his yankiee masters. He is indeed a blyat 😂🤮😂🤮
Thanx, didn’t know what blyat meant but sounds like he named himself well. Thanx for all the faces!
YES, but not a nation by the UN but a providence of China!!
Would it kill you to be more specific? Hitting mainland China for you means anything from 150 to 4800 km.
Japan, SK, Viernam, India should start mass production too. Create more jobs and military cooperation.
you dont seem to see the real issue
I agree, I’ve been having a talk with him and for some reason he don’t believe China is a nation. His is using some weird slide rule but I think he just hates China. It’s his prerogative to like and dislike what or who he wants but trying to go through life wearing Rose Colored glasses to be in his own world is not reality. It is what it is!
japan rok vietnam india and indonesia put into one basket are still a bunch of losers and lowlifes and you expecting to much from them will only make their fall more of a shock to you and believe it or not they will have quite the fall
Other than bullying Phillippines and Nam, Chinese military didn’t do much either.
Come on, if they go to Taiwan’s throwing war, there’s nothing left, they make it sink into the ocean.
this is why i say china is militarily weak without its nuclear weapons similar to most nuclear weapons holders and not just in traditional cold war aspect of warfare but also in modern and post modern warfare china is kind of having its problems simply because china still didnt create a meaningful post modern chinese concept of warfare to create backwards compability so to say and instead they try to become “techies” like the west wants them to be
Biden “doesn’t want confrontation” with China”. Of course not as the US will probably lose if they did and once it happens, China will rain hell on US shores by bringing destruction just as the Murcans would have tried in China.
China can destroy US ships 900 miles away while sipping sake. As for air superiority, that is long gone as China as the capability to destroy all US bases within 2500 miles which includes their fighter jets and bombers. That alone should scare any US president.
Taiwan, Ukraine, Australia must have a government so corrupt.
The Chinese islanders are clearly suicidal.
If needed, China should get help from Russia in order to have the best weapons and the best plan to take Taiwan in a very short while. Taiwan should return to ChIna before the US will make even more dangerous hell out of the division between mainland and Taiwan. The Russians couldn’t allow Crimea fell in the Western hands, China should follow the Russian example.