Author: Joe O’Connor, Shikhar Chaturvedi, Danielle Kremer, & Wyeth Lindberg
This week: Military sources reveal plans to purchase nine more NASAMS fire units, the Navy releases their unmanned surface vessel acquisition plan, the Strong Bow missile system passes operational test and evaluation, and the Legislative Yuan reconvenes to debate special defense budgets, alongside weekly awards and solicitations.
MND Reveals Nine NASAMS Fire Units to be Bought
As part of President Lai’s Taiwan Shield project, the Taiwanese military announced the possible purchase of nine additional National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) fire units, funded by a budget of NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.8 billion). With this purchase, and a previous purchase in 2024, Taiwan will have procured 12 fire units, roughly four batteries’ worth. This missile system will allow Taiwan to defend against aircraft, cruise missiles, and other aerial threats.
Navy Releases USV Acquisition Plan
The Navy’s unmanned surface vessel (USV) program convened an industry briefing meeting before the Lunar New Year, per Liberty Times, to discuss procurement timelines. Navy officials stated on Monday that the acquisition of approximately 1,000 USVs will begin in three phases, with iterative batch tenders of various types being solicited in 2028. Further phases between 2029 and 2033 would enhance 3D recognition and build upon AI technologies to enhance “swarm-control” capabilities. However, the Navy also pointed out that progress on this would increase if the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST), Taiwan’s state-owned weapons development center, were entrusted with program execution.
Strong Bow System Passes Operational Tests
Taiwan’s domestically developed “Strong Bow” (強弓) air and missile defense system appears to have crossed a critical readiness threshold, with recent reporting indicating that the program has completed operational evaluation and is prepared to transition into mass production pending Legislative Yuan approval of the Lai administration’s NT$1.25 trillion special defense budget, tied to the broader “Taiwan Shield / T Dome” framework. Strong Bow is intended to expand Taiwan’s engagement envelope upward, pairing a new Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar claimed to exceed 500 km in surveillance range, with an interceptor layer in the 70 km band, while integrating decision support tools designed to manage saturation conditions alongside existing Sky Bow and Patriot systems. Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo has consistently framed “Taiwan Shield” as a “sensor-to-shooter integration” challenge, stressing that AI-assisted fusion and fire control coordination are essential to raising interception probability rather than simply increasing interceptor counts.
From a procurement perspective, our weekly arms update from early February highlights an MND policy document outlining plans for two launchers and 128 missiles, while the regulated products list also reflects adjacent support equipment tied to the mid-layer anti-tactical ballistic missile architecture. Taken together, Strong Bow’s operational test milestone should be viewed as an important potential inflection point in the “T-Dome” acquisition pipeline.
Legislative Yuan + Special Defense Budget Updates
On Tuesday, the Legislative Yuan (LY) returned from a short Lunar New Year recess. After stating last week that the two rival special defense budget proposals would be among the “very first” to be considered, the chamber voted to advance the Lai administration’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$40 billion) special budget proposal to a joint review by the LY’s Finance Committee and the Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee. This leaves both proposals in the committee review stage, after the TPP’s proposal was advanced on 30 January, prior to the recess.
MND officials, including Minister Wellington Koo, continue to express concern over the timing of budget proposals, pointing to Letters of Offer and Acceptance (LOAs) for three U.S. arms sales approved in December that expire if not signed by March 15. The sales, which include TOW and Javelin anti-armor missiles, as well as Paladin self-propelled howitzers, totaling approximately NT$149.0 billion (US$4.76 billion), would be subject to renegotiation or cancellation if the LOAs are not signed. Koo, expressing worry about this possibility, said that he hoped the LY would pass the administration’s proposal to avert this from happening.
On the sidelines of the LY: the Kuomintang (KMT) announced that they would be releasing their own special budget proposal soon, with plans to submit for review by 6 March. Per KMT sources, the proposal could range from a cap of NT$350 billion (US$11.19 billion) to NT$750 billion (US$23.97 billion) and would likely include significant pay raises for military personnel.
Weekly Awards/Solicitations
On Monday, the Production and Manufacturing Center, Armaments Bureau, made a repeat solicitation of bids for FED #215 primers for rifle cartridges, worth NT$38.00 million (US$1.21 million).
On Tuesday, the Ministry of National Defense solicited bids for procurement of frozen meat products, worth NT$1.96 billion (US$62.60 million).
On Wednesday, the Information, Communications, and Electronic Force Command solicited bids for the licensing of cloud information services, worth NT$36.03 billion (US$1.15 billion).
U.S. Contracts Relating to Taiwan
On Friday, the U.S. Air Force awarded BAE Systems Information and Electronic Systems Integration a US$98.87 million indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract for F-16 commodities sustainment, likely covering spare and other consumable parts. The contract supports Foreign Military Sales (FMS) for Taiwan’s 66 F-16C/D Block 70 aircraft, along with at least 20 other countries. No Taiwan FMS funds were obligated at the time of award. Contract work is expected to continue through February 2037.
On Wednesday, the U.S. Army awarded a contract modification worth US$18.99 million to Iron Mountain Solutions, Inc., for technical support to the Utility Helicopters Project Office. This extension uses Taiwan FMS funds alongside 20 other countries. Work is expected to be completed by September 2026 and is an extension of a contract originally awarded in February 2021.