Taiwan secures deal with US for NASAMS air defense systems
Taiwan has secured a NT$24.99 billion (US$761 million) procurement contract with the United States for three Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) to bolster air defense in northern Taiwan.
The contract was signed by the Defense Mission to the US and the American Institute in Taiwan, amounting to nearly NT$24.99 billion with a six-year time limit for contract performance that runs from Jan. 14 through Dec. 31, 2030, the Taiwanese Defense Ministry said in a statement, News.Az reports, citing Taipei Times.
The NASAMS would be delivered to Taipei’s Songshan District and New Taipei City’s Tamsui District, where they are expected to be deployed, it said.
A source, who wished to remain anonymous, said that there is a chance of the first NASAMS being delivered by the end of this year.
The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on Oct. 25 last year said that the US Department of State had approved three arms sales to Taiwan, including the NASAMS, an L-band AN/TPS-77 long-range radar system and an S-band AN/TPS-78 long-range radar system, which were initially projected to cost about NT$65.2 billion.
The ministry last month said that contracts for the three arms procurements would be signed and delivered by 2034.
The ministry signed four procurement contracts for NASAMS with the US which cost NT$49.3 billion, much less than the NT$65.2 billion estimated and announced by the US government, the source said.
The actual expenditure could be lower because it depends on raw material prices, production costs, order quantities and competing buyers, the source said.
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