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| Taiwan Shows off New Locally Made Armored Vehicle Named Clouded Leopard |
International Military - Taiwan's military exhibited the latest domestically produced armored vehicle on Thursday (16/6/2022). The CM-34 Clouded Leopard is on display at a remote manufacturing site in the mountains of the island's central part.
Taiwan is eager to show its determination to defend itself if China attacks. Beijing claims the democratically-ruled island as its territory. Those fears have become clearer over the past two years as Beijing ramps up military activity near Taiwan.
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While Taiwan relies on the United States for many of its weapons, such as fighter jets, President Tsai Ing-wen is pushing for a greater emphasis on weaponry designed and manufactured by Taiwan. The most famous of these are the new submarines manufactured by Taiwan.
The eight-wheeled CM-34 entered service in 2019 and is armed with a 30mm Mk44 Bushmaster chain gun, manufactured by Northrop Grumman and with an effective firing range of three kilometers. The vehicle was designed to be highly mobile, operating in all weathers.
Facility head Wang Wen-hung told reporters that the factory in Jiji can produce six vehicles a month, and has delivered 173 of them to the military out of a total order of 305 units.
The vehicle was named the Clouded Leopard or Taiwan Clouded Leopard. Although now believed to be extinct, this animal is revered by some indigenous Taiwanese who consider it sacred. The manufacture of combat vehicles is not without problems.
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A number of corruption cases were revealed related to the project. Last year, several senior executives from a supply company were jailed for fraud over the procurement of substandard parts, including some from China, for the previous model, the CM-32.