DEFENSE PROCUREMENT: The Pentagon has told a US congressional hearing that Taiwan has ‘top priority worldwide’ in the delivery of Harpoon missile systems
The US Navy and Boeing Co have conducted a series of tests for land-based Harpoon anti-ship missile system being supplied to Taiwan and released footage showing the system striking a target vessel at sea.
The weapons system and support equipment tested were reportedly tailored for Taiwan, while the first launch vehicles and other components have already begun arriving in Taiwan, with the full delivery of 100 systems scheduled to be completed by the end of 2028.
Pentagon officials have previously told a US congressional hearing that Taiwan has “top priority worldwide” in the delivery of Harpoon missile systems, with production lines operating at full capacity to address threats in the Taiwan Strait.
The navy has budgeted more than NT$90.2 billion (US$2.85 billion) for the procurement of the systems, as part of a program running from 2021 to 2030 to establish a dense network of land-based anti-ship missile defenses.
Taiwan has purchased 100 land-based Harpoon Coastal Defense Systems from the US, which included 400 missiles, four training missiles, 100 missile launch vehicles and 25 radar vehicles. Several launch vehicles, command-and-control vehicles and radar vehicles have arrived in Taiwan, and the navy’s Littoral Combat Command is conducting equipment acceptance and simulated strike training.
The procurement is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2028.
The missiles being acquired by Taiwan are the latest upgraded RGM-84L-4 Harpoon Block II (U) land-based anti-ship missiles. They are equipped with enhanced resistance to electronic countermeasures, which would allow them to identify and engage enemy vessels in heavy-jamming environments, as well as GPS guidance and active radar guidance systems.
The missiles can be used against amphibious landing forces and carrier strike groups, while also possessing a land-attack capability against military installations along the coast. Their range exceeds the about 100km range of earlier ship-launched versions, significantly expanding the area they can cover across the Taiwan Strait.
A key feature of the latest tests was the use of Oshkosh-made Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Trucks (HEMTTs), which are among the US military’s newest heavy-duty tactical vehicles, military news Web site Naval News reported.
Unlike the older trailer-mounted launchers supplied by Boeing to other countries, Taiwan is receiving a highly mobile configuration in which the launch system and vehicle are integrated.
Each eight-wheel-drive HEMTT launch vehicle is equipped with an armored cab and carries four Harpoon missile canisters. The vehicles are designed for rapid movement and concealed deployment over unpaved terrain, providing greater battlefield mobility and survivability than conventional commercial truck-based trailers.
Taiwan Association for Security and Development chairman Chi Tung-yun (紀東昀) said his organization obtained four photographs of the land-based Harpoon system in southern Taiwan last year.
The equipment shown in the photographs almost completely matches footage released by the US military, Chi said.
The photographs show Harpoon missile launch vehicles that differ from those used by Denmark and South Korea, but they use the same Oshkosh HEMTT 8×8 heavy tactical truck chassis as Patriot missile systems, while carrying a new type of missile, he said.
The photographs’ backgrounds were altered using artificial intelligence to obscure identifying details, while text on the transport trailers was removed, he said.
Researchers at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research have previously said that once the US-made Harpoon systems are fully deployed, they would be integrated with Taiwan-made Hsiung Feng II (Brave Wind II, 雄風二型) and Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missiles.
The systems are expected to be linked to the navy’s Littoral Combat Command, creating a layered coastal defense network designed to deter and disrupt an amphibious assault.
The deployment is part of Taiwan’s broader effort to develop a highly mobile, distributed anti-ship capability aimed at countering Chinese military operations across the Taiwan Strait.
EE. UU. PRUEBA LOS MISILES HARPOON ADQUIRIDOS POR TAIWÁN
ADQUISICIÓN DE MATERIAL DE DEFENSA: El Pentágono ha informado ante una audiencia del Congreso de EE. UU. que Taiwán tiene la «máxima prioridad a nivel mundial» en la entrega de sistemas de misiles Harpoon.
La Marina de los EE. UU. y Boeing Co. han realizado una serie de pruebas del sistema de misiles antibuque Harpoon de base terrestre que se está suministrando a Taiwán, y han difundido imágenes que muestran al sistema impactando contra un buque objetivo en el mar.
Según se ha informado, el sistema de armas y el equipo de apoyo probados fueron adaptados específicamente para Taiwán; los primeros vehículos lanzadores y otros componentes ya han comenzado a llegar a la isla, y está previsto que la entrega completa de los 100 sistemas finalice para finales de 2028.
Funcionarios del Pentágono habían declarado anteriormente ante el Congreso estadounidense que Taiwán goza de «máxima prioridad mundial» en la entrega de estos sistemas Harpoon, con las líneas de producción operando a plena capacidad para hacer frente a las amenazas en el estrecho de Taiwán.
La Marina ha presupuestado más de 90.200 millones de dólares taiwaneses (2.850 millones de dólares estadounidenses) para la adquisición de estos sistemas, como parte de un programa que abarca de 2021 a 2030 destinado a establecer una densa red de defensas con misiles antibuque de base terrestre.
Taiwán ha adquirido a EE. UU. 100 sistemas de defensa costera Harpoon de base terrestre, lo que incluye 400 misiles, cuatro misiles de entrenamiento, 100 vehículos lanzadores y 25 vehículos de radar. Ya han llegado a Taiwán varios vehículos lanzadores, de mando y control y de radar, y el Mando de Combate Litoral de la Marina está llevando a cabo la recepción del equipo y ejercicios de entrenamiento de ataques simulados.
Fuente: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2026/08/31/2003863406
SEOUL DETECTS POSSIBLE CONTACTS BETWEEN PYONGYANG AND THE U.S. FOLLOWING TRUMP’S OVERTURES
South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) stated that it has detected possible signs of dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang after U.S. President Donald Trump declared his intention to meet with his North Korean counterpart, Kim Jong-un, this year.
“No concrete facts regarding dialogue have been confirmed, but there are indications that dialogue is taking place,” the NIS said during a closed-door meeting with the National Assembly’s intelligence committee, according to lawmakers cited by the local news agency Yonhap.
South Korean intelligence also deemed a summit between North Korea and the United States possible “at any time,” said lawmakers Youn Kun-yeong of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) and Yoo Yeong-ha of the opposition People Power Party (PPP).
Trump recently expressed a desire to meet with the North Korean leader. Pyongyang has not directly responded to the U.S. president’s proposals but has reiterated its criticism of what it views as a hostile U.S. policy toward North Korea and has conducted several missile tests in recent days.
SEUL DETECTA POSIBLES CONTACTOS ENTRE PYONGYANG Y EE.UU. TRAS LOS INTENTOS DE ACERCAMIENTO DE TRUMP
El Servicio de Inteligencia Nacional (NIS) surcoreano dijo que ha detectado posibles señales de diálogos entre Washington y Pyongyang, después de que el presidente estadounidense, Donald Trump, declarara su intención de reunirse este año con su homólogo norcoreano, Kim Jong-un.
«No se han confirmado hechos concretos de diálogo, pero existen indicios de que se está dialogando», dijo el NIS durante una reunión a puerta cerrada con la comisión de inteligencia de la Asamblea Nacional, según informaron unos legisladores citados por la agencia local de noticias Yonhap.
La inteligencia surcoreana también consideró posible una cumbre entre Corea del Norte y Estados Unidos «en cualquier momento», dijeron los legisladores Youn Kun-yeong, del oficialista Partido Demócrata (PD), y Yoo Yeong-ha, del opositor Partido del Poder Popular (PPP).
Recientemente, Trump expresó su deseo de reunirse con el líder norcoreano. Pyongyang no ha respondido directamente a las propuestas del inquilino de la Casa Blanca, pero ha reiterado sus críticas a lo que considera una política hostil de Estados Unidos a Corea del Norte y realizado varias pruebas de misiles en los últimos días.
Por otro lado, el NIS dijo que todavía no ha establecido ningún contacto con Corea del Norte, después de la propuesta del presidente, Lee Jae Myung, de que ambos países inicien conversaciones para reemplazar el armisticio por paz y poner fin así a la guerra de Corea, en tregua técnica desde hace más de siete décadas.
En lo que respecta a la hija del líder norcoreano, Kim Ju-ae, la inteligencia surcoreana afirmó que parece estar en la etapa de ser designada como sucesora de su padre, debido a su frecuente exposición en los medios de comunicación.
El NIS también informó a los legisladores de que ha obtenido y está analizando «documentos internos» del Partido de los Trabajadores de Corea del Norte y «planos de misiles» del país vecino.
AI: SOUTH KOREA PROPOSES RECORD US$ 597 BILLONES 2027 BUDGET TO SUPERCHARGE AI INVESTMENT
South Korea unveiled its most aggressive fiscal spending plan on record, setting total government expenditure for 2027 at 821 trillion won (US$596.92 billion) to strengthen the country’s technological edge amid the global artificial intelligence (AI) race.
In its annual budget proposal, the budget ministry said the spending plan represented a 12.8 per cent rise from 2026, marking the largest year-on-year increase in the country’s history.
The proposal signals a shift in Asia’s fourth-largest economy under President Lee Jae-myung, who has championed an expansionary fiscal policy since taking office in June last year, pivoting away from three years of fiscal austerity under his predecessor.
The historic spending increase is possible thanks to a windfall from the country’s semiconductor industry.
Chipmakers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are generating unprecedented profits driven by global demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) used in the AI boom.
Total tax revenue is seen increasing 40.7 per cent next year to 584.4 trillion won, with corporate tax receipts alone projected to more than double to 216.7 trillion won.
That revenue will help reduce South Korea’s debt-to-GDP ratio by 3.3 percentage points to 48.3 per cent, down from 51.6 per cent estimated for this year.
“The government plans to deploy fiscal resources preemptively and expansively, backed by the amplified national tax revenues projected for 2026 and 2027,” Budget Minister Park Hong-keun told a news conference.
“From 2028 onwards, a period when these fiscal investments are expected to yield tangible economic returns, we will gradually stabilise the spending growth rate, tapering it down in stages to around the 5.0 per cent level by 2030.”
The government earmarked 2.6 trillion won for a special semiconductor budget, Park said at the cabinet meeting, where the national budget for 2027 is scheduled to be reviewed and adopted.
It also proposed 3.4 trillion won in spending for a nuclear-powered submarine programme and other strategic weapons, presentation material during the meeting showed.
The budget proposal will require parliamentary approval.
Meanwhile, President Lee Jae Myung said on Tuesday the economy is at a point where an interest rate rise is unavoidable, risking denting growth potential at a time the socially disadvantaged are feeling the impact of higher borrowing costs.
Rather than channelling its projected 162.3 trillion won of excess tax revenue into short-term spending, the government plans to direct it into a strategic endowment called the Future Response Fund, designed for long-term investments.
The fund will deploy 45.4 trillion won next year to expand initiatives in youth welfare, future growth engines and specialised education programmes.
For 2027, a core pillar of spending will be to support next-generation semiconductor infrastructure.
The government has allocated 21.3 trillion won for industrial water systems, power grids and logistics networks to strengthen national chip manufacturing and advance critical technology infrastructure nationwide.
Part of the tax windfall will be allocated to reduce government bond issuance. Total government bond sales for next year will drop to 222.8 trillion won, down from 225.7 trillion won in this year’s budget.
Net bond issuance, which reflects the creation of fresh sovereign debt, will decline even more sharply by 13.1 trillion won to 96.3 trillion won, down from 109.4 trillion won this year.
IA: COREA DEL SUR PROPONE UN PRESUPUESTO RECORD DE US$ 597 MIL MILLONES PARA 2027 CON EL FIN DE IMPULSAR LA INVERSIÓN EN IA
Corea del Sur presentó su plan de gasto fiscal más ambicioso hasta la fecha, fijando el gasto público total para 2027 en 821 billones de wones (596.920 millones de dólares) con el objetivo de reforzar la ventaja tecnológica del país en medio de la carrera mundial por la inteligencia artificial (IA).
En su propuesta presupuestaria anual, el ministerio encargado del presupuesto señaló que este plan de gasto supone un aumento del 12,8 % respecto a 2026, lo que representa el mayor incremento interanual en la historia del país.
La propuesta marca un cambio de rumbo para la cuarta economía de Asia bajo el mandato del presidente Lee Jae-myung, quien ha defendido una política fiscal expansiva desde que asumió el cargo en junio del año pasado, alejándose así de los tres años de austeridad fiscal aplicados por su predecesor.
Este histórico aumento del gasto es posible gracias a los ingresos extraordinarios generados por la industria de semiconductores del país.
Published twice per week by Nuevo Poder. Articles and op-eds focusing on geopolitical issues around Indo-Pacific area
Editor: LW, senior fellow of REDCAEM and CESCOS
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