U.S. to sell fast howitzers and ‘smart shells’ to Taiwan

Bloomberg News reports that the Biden administration has notified Congress of a proposal to sell $750 million worth of weapons to Taiwan.

Included in the proposed sale are 40 self-propelled M109 artillery units, a number of other armored vehicles, machine guns and almost 1,700 kits to convert standard artillery shells into smart weapons that can steer themselves toward targets.

The U.S. State Department says the sale of the self-propelled artillery vehicles, known as howitzers, would contribute to the modernization of Taiwan’s howitzer fleet, strengthening its self-defense capabilities to meet current and future threats.

When teamed with the 1,700 GPS kits for artillery shells, the mobile howitzers would be able to deploy quickly all over Taiwan and fire guided shells with high accuracy at incoming ships and invasion forces.

The State Department added that, in addition to enhancing the Taiwanese military’s capabilities, the weapons would also enhance its “interoperability with the US and other allies.”