China's Neighbor Adds More 'Carrier Killers' to Navy

A pair of "carrier killer" corvettes were officially delivered to Taiwan's navy on Tuesday, as the self-ruled island continues to grow its defense capabilities with an eye on China.

President Tsai Ing-wen, who presided over the handover ceremony at Su'ao Harbor in northeast Yilan County, said the indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes are a testament to Taiwan's growing defense autonomy, local media reported.

The new corvettes were the last of an initial group of six that Lungteh Shipbuilding was commissioned to produce. In addition to continued arms purchases from Washington, Taipei is ramping up its own defense manufacturing base amid increasing China military activity in nearby waters.

China claims Taiwan as its own and has vowed to someday annex it, through force if necessary, though the Chinese Communist Party government has never ruled there.

Newsweek reached out to the Chinese embassy in the U.S. outside office hours via written request for comment.

"Four years ago, I named the first (Tuo-chiang) high-performance vessel the Ta Chiang. The (Chinese) character 'ta' (tower) symbolizes the work of domestically building up national defense capabilities," Tsai said at the event.

"Over the past few years, we have steadfastly implemented national defense autonomy, with domestically built vessels being named, launched, and delivered at an increasingly faster pace," she added.

Just 200 feet long and weighing in at only 685 tons, the Tuo Chiang-class was designed to punch above its weight.

Each ship can carry 16 anti-aircraft missiles as well as 12 subsonic Hsiung Feng-II anti-ship cruise missiles and supersonic Hsiung Feng-III missiles. Rounding out its armament is a Phalanx CIWS automated gun system and 76-millimeter cannon.

The corvette is also fast—exceeding 40 knots (46 miles per hour) when fully loaded—and nimble, thanks to its shallow draft and water jet propeller.

Adding to the ship's deadliness is its low profile, Lungteh Shipbuilding President Sheldon Huang told Newsweek.

"The hull's exterior is designed to be invisible, making it difficult for radar to detect. The main engine's exhaust is designed to be measured inside the hull, so infrared rays are difficult to detect," he said.

This speed, agility, and stealthiness coupled with their firepower makes the Tuo Chiang well suited to swarming attacks against much larger capital ships like China's aircraft carriers—hence its nickname.

Su Tzu-yun, research fellow at Taiwan's Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR), called the corvette the "sport compact" car of the sea.

The vessel also represents Taiwan's defense strategy of integrating coastal defense cruise missiles and stealthy corvettes to deny the enemy access to certain areas and "maintain limited superior sea power." he said.

The new warships come as Taipei prepares the first of eight planned made-in-Taiwan attack submarines for duty, with footage released in February showing it undergoing the final stages of its harbor acceptance test.

Update 3/28/24, 11:30 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include comment from Su Tzu-yun.