The United States has decided to delay the delivery of Volcano M136 remote mining systems to Taiwan until 2026, TASS reports, citing the Taipei Shibao newspaper.
There is no specific explanation of what this is related to. In the United States itself, there is talk of delays and other reasons.
The first batch of seven such systems was to be handed over to the Taiwanese armed forces on the island in 2023. Seven more installations by 2026. Now, according to the newspaper’s source, the supply will be limited to one batch.
The transaction amount was 4.9 billion New Taiwan dollars (about 153 million US dollars).
The State Department approved the sale of M136 Volcano systems and related equipment to Taiwan in December 2022. At the time, the deal was valued at $180 million and included, in addition to 14 mining rigs, the 10-ton M977A4 HEMTT heavy tactical trucks on which they are mounted, M87A1 anti-tank mines, and M88 and M89 training munitions. Suppliers will be Northrop Grumman and Oshkosh Corporation.
