Taiwan on Sunday received its first batch of 108 M1A2T Abrams tanks and related equipment from the U.S. as part of a $1.25 billion sales deal approved during the first Trump administration.
The M1A2T is a variant of the third generation of the M1 Abrams and was specifically designed for Taiwan. The Taipei Times reported Tuesday that 38 of the tanks arrived in the Port of Taipei and they were transported Monday to the Hsinchu-based Armor Training Command.
Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense heralded the arrival of the tanks with a post Sunday on X, stating: "Heavy Armors Have Arrived! Welcome to join us! #M1A2T #ROCArmy."
The army previously said 10 of the tanks would remain at the Armor Training Command and the rest would be deployed to two armored brigades in New Taipei City's Linkou District and Hsinchu County's Hukou Township to help defend northern Taiwan, the Taipei Times reported.
Taiwan's armed forces are expected to receive 42 more M1A2Ts next year and 28 in 2026, the Taipei Times reported, citing the Ministry of National Defense's delivery schedule.
Chieh Chung, a research fellow at the Association of Strategic Foresight, told the Taipei Times that Taiwan's army has relied on aging U.S.-made M60A3 tanks, first delivered in 1994, and domestic CM11 tanks. He said they would be no match for the Chinese People's Liberation Army's advanced Type 05 amphibious fighting vehicles.
Taiwan's defense would be at a disadvantage without access to the latest generation of advanced tanks, Chieh said.
The performance of Taiwan's 460 M60A3 tanks in service will be improved, mainly for gun control and firing control, plus observation and aiming systems and engines will be upgraded, the Liberty Times reported Sunday. The army's 584th Brigade, which used the CM11 as its main combat vehicle, will replace all of them with the M1A2T.
Wang Ya'nan, chief editor of the Beijing-based Aerospace Knowledge magazine, told the Chinese state-owned Global Times on Sunday that roles and survivability of tanks face serious challenges in modern land combat, especially with threats from drones.
If the Taiwan authorities believe that tanks can bring a significant boost to its military capabilities, their hopes are too high, Wang said. "The time has changed, and the combat patterns of the past are no more," he said.
Su Tzu-yun, a research fellow at the military-funded Institute for National Defense and Security Research, told the Taipei Times that in the event of an invasion by China's People's Liberation Army, Taiwan's first line of defense would be anti-ship missiles, followed by domestic and U.S.-made mobile artillery rocket systems, such as the Thunderbolt-2000 RT/LT-2000, M109 self-propelled howitzer and M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems.
Combat helicopters such as the AH-64E Apache stand as the third line of defense and coastal defense missiles serve as the fourth line, he said. The fifth and final line of defense is comprised of tanks, including M1A2Ts, and ground forces.
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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