A Study of U.S. Arms Sales and the Transfer of Defense Technology to the Navy of the Republic of China (Taiwan)

Abstract

U.S. Foreign Military Sales to ROC in Taiwan have always been a controversial matter, and the United States has often yielded to the pressure from Communist China. The Taiwan Relations Act was designed by Congress to provide adequate safeguards for the well-being of Taiwan. But the law is too flexible for implementation to be effective, and effectiveness seems to rest largely on the good faith of the executive office. The strategic location of Taiwan has great significance for U.S. strategic political and economic interests in East Asia and the Western Pacific. Gen. Douglas MacArthur described the island as an 'Unsinkable aircraft carrier.' Since the security of Taiwan is intimately linked to the overall security of the Pacific Area, U.S. defense technology transfer is of prime importance to help Taiwan upgrade its defense capability for protecting the sky and sea lanes over the Taiwan Strait.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 1990
Accession Number
ADA238021

Entities

People

  • Chu-cheng Kuan

Organizations

  • Naval Postgraduate School

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Cold War
  • Defense Industry
  • Foreign Policy
  • Human Rights
  • Intergovernmental Organizations
  • International Law
  • International Organizations
  • International Relations
  • Law
  • National Security
  • Nato
  • Naval Operations
  • Navy
  • Political Systems
  • Shipbuilding
  • Treaties
  • United States

Readers

  • Nuclear Non-Proliferation and International Security
  • Political Science/ International Relations/ European Studies
  • Strategic Security Studies