Taiwan's military unveiled Thursday's newest domestically made armored vehicle, the CM-34 Clouded Leopard, at a remote manufacturing site in the island's mountainous central part, amid tensions with China.
Taiwan is eager to show its determination to defend itself if China, which claims the island as its own, attacks, as Beijing has stepped up military activities near Taiwan for the past two years.
While Taiwan relies on the United States for many of its weapons, such as fighter jets, President Tsai Ing-wen has pushed for a greater emphasis on domestically made weaponry, including submarines.
The eight-wheeled CM-34, which entered service in 2019, is armed with a 30mm Mk44 Bushmaster gun made by Northrop Grumman with an effective firing range of 3 km. This armored vehicle is designed to be highly mobile, operating in all weathers.
Citing Reuters, Chief Ordnance Readiness Development Center Wang Wen-hung said the factory in Jiji could produce six CM-34 armored vehicles per month, and had delivered 173 of them to the Taiwanese military out of a total order of 305.
Follow Daily Post on Google News to update information quickly. Thank you for visiting our website..!! Don't forget to share any information to help develop our website..