Taiwan has begun its largest-ever military exercises amid the threat of an invasion by China
Kyiv • UNN
Taiwan has begun the largest Han Kuang military exercises, which will continue until August 14. They include air-raid drills and a reduction in mobile internet speed.
On Wednesday, August 5, Taiwan began its largest military exercises of the year, Han Kuang, during which the military and civilians will practice responding to a possible Chinese invasion. AFP reports, UNN writes.
Details
The annual Han Kuang exercises, which will run from August 5 to 14, simulate combat scenarios so that service members and reservists can practice responding to an attack on the island, defense officials said.
Civilians will also take part in the exercises. They will include a temporary reduction in mobile internet speeds, as well as air-raid drills.
China considers Taiwan part of its territory and has threatened to use force to establish control over the island, which has a population of 23 million.
In recent years, Beijing has significantly increased military pressure on Taiwan, sending fighter jets and warships to the area around the island almost daily, as well as conducting large-scale military exercises.
China's coast guard has also intensified so-called "gray-zone" activities — actions that fall short of open warfare — around Taiwan and its outlying islands.
On Wednesday, dozens of reservists deployed on a beach facing the Taiwan Strait and opened fire with Taiwanese assault rifles at targets on the coast where Chinese troops could land in the event of an invasion.
"As the authoritarianism of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) continues to spread, the 'red terror' is also reaching every corner of the world," President Lai Ching-te said at a security forum ahead of the exercises.
"We will continue to strengthen our national defense and build a comprehensive defense and societal resilience system," he said.
Taiwan has increased defense spending and acquired smaller, more mobile weapons, including drones, so that its army can wage asymmetric warfare against China.
Under strong pressure from the United States to increase security spending, Lai's government has pledged to raise defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2030.
However, the government is in conflict with opposition parties, which control parliament, over the amount of funding for strengthening the island's defense capabilities.
In May, the Kuomintang (KMT) and the Taiwan People's Party approved a special defense budget of $25 billion, cutting by approximately one-third the amount requested by Lai's Democratic Progressive Party.
The opposition excluded approximately $15 billion that the government had planned to allocate for the purchase of domestically produced drones and other defense-strengthening measures.
One of the key features of this year's Han Kuang exercises is the decentralization of the command-and-control system, so that commanders and officers directly on the battlefield can make operational decisions independently without waiting for orders.
At the same time, exercises to increase the resilience of cities will be held as part of government measures to prepare the entire island for a possible war or natural disaster.
During air-raid drills in the central and northern regions of the country, mobile internet speeds will be reduced for 30 minutes, as the government seeks to familiarize the public with possible disruptions to communications.