Now Taiwan to buy used US frigates, says Taipei newspaper

Taiwan plans to buy eight second-hand Perry class frigates from the United States to boost its sea defence, a newspaper on the island reported, days after the arms sale between the two spurred five rounds of biting criticism from Beijing.

The China Times reported yesterday that the island's Defence Ministry also sought to buy other technological advances from the US to build its own version of the Aegis Combat System in a bid to replace the Jiyang-class, or Knox-class, frigates that have served for 30 years.

The Taipei-based newspaper described the plan to renew its frigate system as an attempt to 'revive' a similar proposal to build a home-grown Aegis system, which was deserted 15 years ago because of pressure from Beijing and budget constraints.

The island's Defence Ministry said in a statement that it would replace the frigates according to 'procedures and plans', but it had yet to single out a specific model for replacement.

It added the ministry would seek to maximise the defence capability of any new purchases with 'limited national defence resources'.

'Any kind of frigate that suits our combative requirement would be taken into consideration,' it said.

The China Times said the Perry-class frigates were targeted because the island already has a fleet of such vessels, known as Cheng-Kung class. That would therefore save the ministry maintenance costs, the newspaper said.