<p >The Republic of China Ministry of National Defence is preparing to significantly expand orders for American M109 155mm self propelled howitzers, which are set to increase from 40 to 168 vehicles, or 420 percent of previously planned levels. Defence officials have reportedly pointed to the system’s considerable 40 kilometre engagement range, which bridges the gap between existing howitzers, and the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) which have also been <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/republic-of-china-army-first-himars-rocket-artillery" target="_blank">procured from the United States</a> that boast 80 kilometre engagement ranges. The planned expansion of orders also follows a significant escalation of pressure from the United States to increase procurements of American armaments in exchange for continued military and political support. Orders for costly M982 Excalibur satellite guided rounds for the system are also expected to be placed, while some reports indicates that significantly increased procurements of other kinds of American equipment for the Republic of China Army are under consideration.&nbsp;</p><p ><img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/07/06/article_686a99b0f40ef2_03034959.jpg" title="M109 Howitzer Fires 155mm Shell"></p><p >The Republic of China government based in Taipei claims to be the sole government of the entire Chinese nation, and is currently in a state of civil war with the People’s Republic of China government based in Beijing.&nbsp;With the International community including the United States and the United Nations continuing to recognise the People’s Republic of China as the sole legitimate Chinese government, the Republic of China Armed Forces have struggled to procure armaments from abroad, reflecting their status as effectively a non-state military force. As the only significant defence producer willing to supply armaments, this has left the United States with an effective monopoly as a supplier, with its only competition for contracts to equip the Republic of China Armed Forces coming from local industry, the capabilities of which have proven to be highly limited.&nbsp;</p><p ><img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/07/06/article_686a99fdb11ab9_67853986.jpeg" title="Chinese PLA Army Ground Force PLZ-05 155mm Howitzers"></p><p >The M109 variant under consideration is the heavily enhanced M109A7 variant, which benefits from a new chassis, engine, transmission, and track system&nbsp; not seen on prior variants, as well as a new digital fire control system, GPS and digital navigation systems, a tactical data link, and onboard diagnostics systems. Its primary rival system fielded on the Chinese mainland is the PLZ-05, which is a much newer design that boasts a 150 percent longer engagement range of 100 kilometres using WS-35B rounds. The vast discrepancy in artillery capabilities on both sides of the Taiwan Strait has led the Republic of China Army to begin to train to disperse its howitzers in civilian population centres, making them more difficult to target but also raising significant controversies. It is expected that in the event of war, howitzers will be targeted from the air using a wide range of drones and guided missiles launched from the mainland. With an insufficient range to fire across the Taiwan Strait, which is approximately 130 kilometres at its narrowest, M109 units are expected to primarily train for a ground campaign on Taiwan Island itself.</p>
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