Taiwan is considering the purchase of nine additional U.S.-made NASAMS air defense systems, a move that would raise its planned fleet to twelve batteries. Yet the spotlight fell squarely on NASAMS, the Norwegian-American networked surface-to-air missile system already in service with NATO militaries. It is often described as the world’s first operational short-to-medium range air defense system built around a networked architecture. Performance varies with radar and missile combinations, but standard NASAMS batteries can strike targets 24–32 kilometers out at altitudes up to 15,000 meters. Twelve NASAMS batteries would not tip the balance of power across the Taiwan Strait, but they would make any sudden escalation far more costly and complex.