Taiwan Advances Chiang Kung Hypersonic Interceptor as T-Dome Defense Takes Shape

Taiwan’s NCSIST announced the Chiang Kung outer-layer hypersonic interceptor for the planned T-Dome IAMD system, a land-based mobile launcher that would fire four-missile packs to intercept ballistic missiles at mid-altitudes up to about 70 km using a two-stage solid-fuel rocket and an accompanying mobile AESA radar; two systems with at least 128 missiles are planned on a $1.13B budget, though progress is hindered by legislative gridlock that led to funding exclusions in 2026. The roundup also notes nine individuals—including an Nvidia manager—indicted in Taiwan for smuggling AI servers to the PRC under US export controls, PLA Daily analyses stressing AI-enabled and dissipative warfare, ongoing PRC maritime activity around Taiwan, and supply-chain strains from PRC export controls on germanium and quartz impacting Taiwan’s high-tech industries amid US Navy transits in the Taiwan Strait.