A US government report out on Tuesday says that a recently introduced Taiwanese ship called the Tuo Jiang Class Corvette will boost the nation’s defense capabilities.
The report is the work of the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a body that reports to the US Congress on China-related issues.
Taiwan has only built one Tuo Jiang Class corvette so far, which it completed last year. However, the report says that the new class of patrol vessel would be able to stop a Chinese amphibious attack once the navy has built more.
The new class of ships, called “the carrier killer”, is capable of avoiding detection by radar. However, the report cautions that the new class could face several challenges in an actual wartime scenario. Over-reliance on land-based radar for command and over-the-horizon targeting, and issues with resupplying, could both limit the effectiveness of the ships.