Taiwan's military showcased its latest domestically produced armored vehicle Thursday at a remote manufacturing site in the mountainous central part of the island. The name of the vehicle is the CM-34 Clouded Leopard.
Citing Reuters, Taiwan is eager to show its determination to defend itself if China, which claims the democratically-ruled island as its own, attacks them.
Those fears have become clearer over the past two years as Beijing ramps up military activity near Taiwan.
Taiwan relies heavily on the United States for supplies of its weapons, such as fighter jets. On the other hand, President Tsai Ing-wen has pushed for a greater emphasis on weaponry designed and manufactured by Taiwan, the most famous of which is the new submarine.
The eight-wheeled CM-34, which entered service in 2019, is armed with a 30mm Mk44 Bushmaster chain gun, manufactured by Northrop Grumman and with an effective firing range of 3 km (1.9 miles). This armored vehicle is designed to be highly mobile, and capable of operating in all weathers.
Facility head Wang Wen-hung told reporters that the plant in Jiji can produce six vehicles a month, and has delivered 173 of them to the military out of a total order of 305.
This vehicle is named after the Taiwan tree tiger. Although now believed to be extinct, this animal is revered by some indigenous Taiwanese who consider it sacred. The development of the vehicle is not without problems.
Last year, several senior executives from a supply company were jailed for fraud over the procurement of substandard parts, including some from China, for the previous model, the CM-32.
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