Representatives of Taiwan and the US have not discussed the idea of building a plant the island to produce Stinger man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS), said the head of Taiwan's Ministry of Defense, Gu Lixiong.
„No such negotiations have been held,” Taiwan's Central News Agency quoted him as saying during a speech at the Legislative Yuan (legislature). This is how the head of the department commented upon the request of people's representatives on the latest publications in local media.
According to him, Stinger production is localized in a very narrow number of countries and depends entirely on demand. As Gu Lixiong noted, Taiwan will not be able to guarantee a sufficient level of demand for such MANPADS and thus ensure their long-term production.
October 3, newspaper "Ziyu Shibao" citing sources in the armed forces, reported that the US is considering the possibility of building a plant in Taiwan to produce the Stinger MANPADS. According to her, the production should be created by Taiwan's leading weapons developer Zhongshan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST). As the newspaper noted, the US planned to send specialists to the island to assess the production base in 2025 and, in case of a positive decision, to start production as early as 2026.
Taiwan has been governed by its own administration since 1949, when the remnants of Kuomintang forces led by Chiang Kai-shek (1887-1975) fled there after being defeated in the Chinese Civil War. Beijing considers Taiwan one of the provinces of the People's Republic of China. The US severed diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 1979 and established them with the People's Republic of China. Recognizing the "one China" policy, Washington at the same time continues to maintain contacts with the Taipei administration. The US is the main arms supplier to Taiwan. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the total amount of US military supplies to the island for several years exceeds USD 70 billion.