TAIPEI (Jan 30): Taiwan completed the maiden underwater sea trial for its first domestically developed submarine on Thursday, a big milestone in a project aimed at strengthening deterrence against the Chinese navy and protecting vital sea lanes in the event of war. The submarine programme has drawn on expertise and technology from several countries, including the US and Britain, a breakthrough for diplomatically isolated Taiwan, whose government rejects Beijing's territorial claims. "Due to constraints in the international environment and pressure from the Chinese communists, Taiwan's indigenous submarine programme has faced various difficulties and challenges from the beginning to the present," CSBC said. Taiwan has said it hopes to deploy at least two such domestically developed submarines by 2027, and possibly equip later models with missiles. Taiwan President Lai Ching-te announced in November 2025 that his government would spend an additional US$40 billion (RM157.02 billion) on defence.

Source: The Edge Markets January 30, 2026 10:34 UTC