The U.S. Department of Defense announced on February 2 that the ministry has signed a contract worth $68.4 million with the U.S. defense industry company "Raytheon" to deliver 50 AGM154-C air-to-surface missiles to the Taiwan authorities. It is reported that most of the work will be carried out in Tucson, Arizona, and the contracted work is scheduled to be completed in March 2028.
In addition, Russia's Sputnik news network quoted Reuters as saying that the United States said that after the United States held the "Talisman Knife" exercise in the summer of 2023, it left a batch of military equipment in Australia, which is believed to also be provided to the Taiwan authorities.
Shi Hong, a special commentator on Shenzhen Satellite TV's direct news, pointed out in this analysis that this aspect shows that US arms sales to Taiwan are still continuing, and the intensity is still increasing. AGM154-C is an advanced standoff strike currently equipped by the U.S. military**, which emphasizes long-range strike in terms of design, adopts gliding wings, and is capable of gliding in the air for a long time. Its range depends on the altitude at which the aircraft is delivered, and if the altitude is above 10,000 meters, it can glide for a long time, and the maximum range can reach 130 kilometers. However, if the aircraft is launched at a relatively low altitude, for example, below a few thousand meters, the AGM154-C will be greatly reduced in terms of range, only more than 20 kilometers.
This means that this joint defense zone outside the zone will not play much role for the Taiwan authorities, because it does not have much advantage in terms of range, and there is no possibility of penetrating the current air defense system of the PLA.
Shi Hong pointed out: In terms of performance, the AGM154-C that the United States has sold to the Taiwan authorities is not as good as the Wanjian airborne standoff missile developed by the Taiwan region itself, and its maximum range can reach more than 200 kilometers. Obviously, the ** provided by the United States to the Taiwan authorities is not the most advanced, and the American AGM158-B and AGM158-C can reach more than 900 kilometers in terms of range.
Shi Hong believes that the purpose of US arms sales to Taiwan is to play the "Taiwan card" to balance China, but the United States is also worried that after providing the Taiwan authorities with a more advanced system, it will cause the Taiwan authorities to engage in military adventures. On the one hand, the United States wants to strengthen the combat capability of the Taiwan authorities, but on the other hand, it must also prevent the Taiwan authorities from drawing the US track strategically.
Editor丨Duan Xiaoqing, editor-in-chief of Shenzhen Satellite TV Direct News.