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TAIWAN, U.S. MILITARY DIALOGUE CONCLUDES SUCCESSFULLY

ROC Central News Agency

2006-11-18 14:31:24

    Washington, Nov. 18 (CNA) An annual dialogue between the deputy defense ministers of Taiwan and the United States concluded earlier this week in Washington, D.C., with both sides reaching consensus on issues concerning arms deals, military exchanges and defense industry cooperation.

    The meeting was headed by Vice Minister of National Defense Ko Chen-heng and U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England.

    According to informed sources, the U.S. thinks the meeting was successful and effective in clarifying a lot of misleading information it had obtained from the media, especially about Taiwan's arms procurement package.

    Washington is happy with the fact that part of the budget for the procurement package has passed preliminary review in Taiwan's Legislative Yuan, according to the sources.

    The package covers eight diesel-electric submarines, a squadron of 12 P-3C anti-submarine aircraft and six Patriot PAC-III anti-missile batteries.

    The Legislative Yuan's National Defense Committee finally agreed early this month to allocate NT$37.06 million (US$1.13 million) for submarines and NT$2.48 million for anti-submarine aircraft that are listed in the government's annual budget proposal for 2007, although it vetoed NT$4.2 million in "procurement operation fees" for PAC-III anti-missile batteries.

    However, the Legislative Yuan refused to include on the legislative agenda a NT$6.3 billion supplementary budget proposal including NT$200 million for a submarine feasibility assessment, NT$1.7 billion for the P-3Cs in the first year and NT$3.7 billion for the upgrading of the PAC-II missiles.

    The U.S. government has repeatedly expressed concern over the delay in passing the budget for the arms procurement, and Stephen Young, director of the American Institute in Taiwan's (AIT) Taipei office, urged Taiwan last month to pass the procurement budget this fall, raising the ire of a few Taiwanese politicians who felt that this construed an "insult."

    Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior U.S. official also warned Oct. 27 that Taiwan will lose the support of the United States if it continues to delay its arms procurement plan.

(By Chiehyu Lin and Y.F. Low)

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