《TAIPEI TIMES》 HIMARS, Javelin deliveries expected ahead of schedule

By Lo Tien-pin, Aaron Tu and Esme Yeh / Staff reporters, with staff writer

Delivery of long-range High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems （HIMARS） and medium-range FGM-148 Javelin missiles from the US is expected to be completed ahead of schedule, despite delays of other equipment, a Ministry of National Defense official said yesterday.

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The ministry’s budget for this year shows more than 20 purchases of weapons-related packages from the US, with 18 listed as open budget items.

Delivery of three items has been delayed, two items are to arrive earlier than planned and 13 are running on schedule.

The US government has been making improvements to meet schedules, as it has realized that delays would significantly affect Taiwan’s national security, said the official, who asked to remain anonymous.

Delivery and installation of the 18 HIMARS, which were purchased along with 11 Army Tactical Missile Systems and precision rocket systems for NT$3.25 billion （US$100.53 million）, would be completed as early as 2026, the official said.

Delivery of 400 Javelin missile systems, an anti-tank weapon, for NT$3.43 billion would be completed by the end of this year, they said.

Of the Javelin systems, 251 were delivered in early March — 51 more than initially scheduled, they said.

Separately, the ministry has purchased 108 M1A2T Abrams tanks from the US, 38 of which are scheduled to be delivered this year, its budget showed.

Of those that are not yet delivered, 42 are to arrive next year and the remaining 28 in 2026, it showed.

The budget for the tanks was NT$40.52 billion from 2019 to 2027, it showed.

At the end of last year, 14 of the tanks had been delivered to the army, which is having personnel trained on their use at a US military base, the ministry said in a report to the legislature.

The tanks are to be deployed in northern Taiwan, the report added.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES