Taiwan has put into service a US-made billion-dollar early warning radar system capable of giving more than six minutes’ warning of a mainland missile attack, a senior officer said on Sunday.
The radar, on top of a mountain in the northern county of Hsinchu, started providing surveillance information after a ceremony presided over by the chief of the general staff, air force General Yen Ming, on Friday.
“The radar is able to provide us with more than six minutes’ warning in preparation for any surprise attacks,” air force Lieutenant General Wu Wan-chiao said.
The Liberty Times newspaper said the phased array warning system, which cost NT$40.9 billion (HK$10.7 billion), is capable of detecting flying objects up to 5,000 kilometres away.
“The system enabled Taiwan to have comprehensive surveillance controls when North Korea launched a rocket in December and the mainland tested its anti-missile system lately,” it quoted an unnamed military officer as saying, speaking of the radar’s trial runs since late last year.
Critics say the radar is too costly given that it will provide only an additional few minutes of warning, and would itself be vulnerable to any mainland missile attacks.