• Military

• WMD Menu                           

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

PRESIDENT REGRETS BOYCOTT OF U.S. ARMS PROCUREMENT BY OPPOSITION

ROC Central News Agency

2005-11-08 22:10:50

    Taipei, Nov. 8 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian expressed his regret Tuesday over the opposition parties' continuing actions to block the government's arms procurement package from the United States.

    Chen pointed out that the proposal to buy diesel electric submarines, Patriot PAC-III anti-missile batteries and P-3C anti-submarine aircraft was first put forth by the former Kuomintang (KMT) government.

    However, those people who made this decision "seem to have changed their brains following the change of their positions" and they are now obstructing the package in disregard for national security, Chen criticized.

    The president made the remarks in Taipei during a meeting with leaders of the Taiwanese expatriate community in the United States.

    Noting that two of the four Kidd-class destroyers that Taiwan purchased from the United States were delivered to the country on Oct. 29, Chen said the commissioning of the four destroyers would symbolize the strengthening of the Taiwan-U.S. strategic partnership and Taiwan's commitment to safeguarding peace across the Taiwan Strait.

    While it was the former KMT government that requested to purchase the three items from the United States, the decision to buy the destroyers was made by the present Democratic Progressive Party government, Chen said.

    He said there must be a lot of people who feel as strange and baffled as himself as to why the procurement of the Kidd-class destroyers, which started later, has been completed earlier than the procurement of the other three items.

    According to the president, there is no reason or logic to guide which arms procurement will pass and which one will not pass the Legislative Yuan, where the professional advice of the military does not receive due respect.

    Chen alleged that the people who used to support the arms procurement are now opposing it for the sake of partisan interests after their party lost power, behavior which he said is irresponsible and regrettable.

    Chen claimed that he is promoting the arms procurement just to be responsible to the people, history and the country and that the weapons, which would only be delivered to Taiwan after he steps down in 2008, will add no merit to his own political career.

(By Y.F. Low)

ENDITEM/mw