Opposition lawmakers yesterday accused the Ministry of National Defense (MND) of interfering in the Taipei mayoral election after the ministry ruled out Taipei's Sungshan Airport as a possible base for direct cross-strait flights.
The allegation met immediate denial from Minister of National Defense Tang Yao-ming (湯曜明), who said the ministry has addressed the issue with military and security considerations in mind rather than from a political point of view.
A number of KMT and PFP legislators made such an allegation against the ministry yesterday, with the most forceful one being from PFP Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方), who is also an expert in international and strategic studies.
Lin said the ministry's 28-point national security assessment fails to prove that the Sungshan Airport is unfit to become a base for direct cross-strait flights.
The PFP lawmaker said it is obvious that the ministry has drawn the conclusion for the sake of "political correctness," at the expense of professionalism.
Making Sungshan Airport a base for direct cross-strait flights is a key proposal of Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
But President Chen Shui-bian (
Chen endorses DPP Taipei mayoral candidate Lee Ying-yuan's (
During a joint meeting of the legislature's defense and budget committees on Thursday, Kang Ning-hsiang (康寧祥), deputy defense minister for administrative affairs, expressed the MND's position on the issue for the first time saying that "Sungshan Airport is not to be taken into consideration" for running direct flights to China.
Kang argued that the ministry must be especially cautious because the airport is located in the capital, close to the country's financial and military command centers.
Supporting Kang's view, Lieutenant-General Ke Kuan-yueh (
However, Lin, who has obtained a copy of the ministry's confidential national security assessment, said yesterday that he has examined the report thoroughly and is still unable to find a reason for the MND's conclusion.
According to Lin, it makes no difference whether direct cross-strait links are opened to Kaohsiung's Hsiaokang International Airport or Taipei's Sungshan Airport, as their assessments are similar when it comes to sea and air defense and susceptibility to China's military reconnaissance.
While the assessment of the Sungshan Airport noted the risk of China forcing a "Trojan horse" into Taiwan by way of civilian planes, this threat is rated by the MND as "essential" rather than "serious," Lin said.
This indicates that the ministry does not consider this scenario a serious threat to national security, Lin added.
Citing security assessments both by the US and Taiwan, Lin said enforcing a sea blockade and firing missiles at Taiwan are the most likely methods that China would adopt in any attack.
It would be unnecessary for China to land troops via the Sungshan Airport and shell the Presidential Office, Lin said.
This scenario was suggested by DPP Legislator Lee Wen-chung (
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