Taiwan advised to start small in bid to make submarines at home

As the 2016 presidential election edges closer, Taiwan's desire to build submarines at home has gained attention, with one submarine expert suggesting that Taiwan start with small 500-ton vessels.

Wang Jyh-perng, a Navy captain and associate research fellow at the Association for Managing Defense and Strategies, said Monday that for a beginner like Taiwan, building small ships would allow it to avoid the high costs in developing and producing submarines as big as the 3,000-ton Swordfish-class diesel sub it owns now.

It would also be easier for Taiwan to acquire the technologies needed if it aimed at smaller targets, Wang said while addressing a national defense policy blue paper released by the opposition Democratic Progressive Party last week.

Read more