TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan is grateful to the U.S. government for continuing to implement its security commitments in accordance with the Taiwan Relations Act and the Six Assurances, Presidential Office Spokesperson Xavier Chang (張惇涵) said on Thursday (Dec. 29).

The statement follows the news of Washington’s approval of the potential US$180 million (NT$5.53 billion) sale of M-139 Volcano Vehicle-Launched Scatterable Mine Systems to Taiwan, per a Presidential Office press release.

Though they can also be outfitted onto Black Hawk helicopters, the systems offered to Taiwan will be mounted on M977 trucks. Their mobility will help to enhance Taiwan’s asymmetrical combat power, Chang said.

Taiwan will continue to show its determination to bolster its self-defense and safeguard its national security and interests, he said. Chang added that Taiwan will continue to cooperate with like-minded countries to ensure the peace, stability, prosperity, and development of the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region.

The M-139 Volcano was originally developed in the 1980s but all systems were placed in storage by the late 1990s for more than 20 years due to changing priorities on the battlefield. However, beginning in the early 2010s, the U.S. Army began the process of refurbishing the Volcanos to provide mine-scattering capabilities to ground forces.

The system is able to lay 960 mines in under one minute, according to the U.S. Army’s 82nd Combat Aviation Brigade.