China-Taiwan Severe Race for Arms

China recorded number one importing arms in the world last year, and Taiwan is known as the country that has expended the largest defense budget on importing arms in the word for last 5 years from 1997 to 2001. It reflects fierce arms race between the two countries and causes an arms race in Asian pacific area.

Taiwanese media quoted Year Book 2002 of Stockholm International Peace Research Institute(SIPRI) and reported at 16th of June "China expended 27 billion dollars on defense budget last year and the import of arms in the last year increased 44% than year 2000". On the other hand, Chinese media quoted the same year Book and reported " Taiwan has imported 11.4 billion dollars of arms for the last five years from 1997 to 2002, and it is the biggest amount in the world."

China imported a high-tech destroyer of Sovremenny level of 8000 tons last year (imported the first one in 1999) from Russia and ordered two destroyers additionally. China has reinforced navy and air force by inducing 4 submarines of Kilo level, 20 Suhoi-thirty multi purposed bombers. Taiwan ordered 8 diesel submarines, 12 of P3C for patrol and 4 destroyers of Kidd level from USA. It is the biggest amount of order for last 10 years.

Taiwanese media mentioned strongly that Russia exported 4.97 billion dollars last year due to the increase in the trading of arms between Russia and China. So Russia s surpassed USA in export of arms first time since the cease of cold war.

According to the Year Book of SIPRI, whole of defense budget decrease for 11 years from 1987 to 1998, but it began to increase and recorded 839 billion dollars last year. Top five countries in the budget are; △USA(281.4 billion dollars) △Russia(43.9 billion dollars) △France(40billion dollars) △Japan(38.5 billion dollars) △UK(37 billion dollars).

The Year Book indicated " The 9.11 Terror occurred in USA last year was a turning point to change completely the approach to access the issue of international security, Allied protection against terrorism and the extension of mass shed blood arms convert rival and hostile relationship among countries to mutual dependent relationship among countries. However USA tends to prefer unilateralism."

Up to last year, USA has launched 110 military satellites on Earth orbit, Russia 40 satellites, and other countries 20 satellites. It also reflects severe arms race in the space.

yshwang@donga.com