‘We won’t retreat an inch’: Taiwan enlists US-made submarine hunters to repel Beijing threats

Taiwan’s navy has commissioned two former US Perry-class guided missile frigates to boost the self-ruled island’s anti-submarine defences, with the island’s president vowing not to back down in the face of growing military threats from Beijing.

The two frigates, PFG-1112 Ming Chuan and PFG-1115 Feng Chia, commissioned by President Tsai Ing-wen on Thursday, are equipped with the American-made SQR-19 sonar system, giving them a far superior anti-submarine performance than the navy’s existing eight Chengkung-class frigates built by Taiwan, according to naval officers.

The frigates are also equipped with the MK13 guided missile launch system, designed to fire RGM-84 Harpoon Block II missiles as an anti-ship defence – the first such firing system used by any naval vessels and capable of attacking coastal and bayside targets, they said.

“Through the commission of Ming Chuan and Feng Chia, we want to send a clear message to the world … that we are not only devoted to strengthening our armaments but are determined to safeguard the Republic of China in Taiwan as well as our free and democratic way of life,” Tsai, commander-in-chief of the Taiwanese forces, said during a commissioning ceremony at the naval port of Zuoying in Kaohsiung, southern Taiwan.

“We will not retreat an inch,” she said, referring to growing military intimidation from the mainland.