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US seeks to buy ammunition from Taiwan as stocks run low
United Evening News -Taiwan
January 5, 2005

The United States is planning to buy hundreds of millions of bullets from Taiwan in the first such deal as its supplies are running low after wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, a report said Thursday. Citing Taiwanese military sources, the United Evening News said Washington had made the request to acquire some 300 million 5.56 NATO ammunition for rifles for an estimated two billion Taiwan dollars (62.5 million US).

The deal was yet to be finalized pending price negotiations, it said.

An unnamed general quoted by the paper said it would be the first time for Washington, Taiwan's leading arms supplier, to acquire arms from the island.

In line with its usual practice, Taiwan's defense ministry declined to comment on the report.

Taiwan produces some 400 million such 5.56 NATO rounds annually, according to the paper. It added most rifle ammunition is manufactured by an arsenal in southern Kaohsiung which has storage problems due to declining demand in the absence of any military conflict across the Taiwan Strait.

The paper also said Taiwan had exported T-91 rifles to several countries in Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe.

Washington Wednesday agreed to sell air-to-ground Hellfire missiles worth 50 million US dollars to Taiwan to help the island defend itself against threats from rival China.

"The US Army has executed a letter of agreement with Taiwan, setting the stage for the sale of more than 400 AGM-114M blast-fragmentation Hellfire rounds under a foreign military sales contract," US defense giant Lockheed Martin Corporation said.

It would take the company about six months to make the Hellfire missiles ordered by Taiwan.

The missiles will be mounted on Taiwan's Super Cobra AH-1W attack and OH-58D Kiowa Warrior scout helicopters.

 

 

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