The military staged live-fire cannon exercises yesterday, continuing major annual maneuvers coinciding with large-scale war games reportedly being conducted by China.
The anti-landing drill on the southwestern coast involved firing at targets 7km off the coast.
About 450 troops joined in the exercise, which is part of the annual Han Kuang maneuvers demonstrating the nation's readiness in the event of an attack from China.
On Thursday around 5,000 troops joined exercises on the southern coast simulating an attempt to repel an enemy beach landing.
This drill also involved armored vehicles and around 300 paratroopers.
The maneuvers are taking place as Beijing urged the US to stop arms sales to Taiwan given the "seriousness" of cross-strait ties.
"The United States should clearly understand the seriousness and sensitiveness of the Taiwan situation," Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing (
Fargo is in China to meet with senior military officials, days after the State Department urged China and Taiwan to ensure that military exercises on both sides are not provocative.
Li said US arms sales to Taipei should be halted and the US must "stop its relevant military exchanges aiming to upgrade the substantial relationship with Taiwan," the official Xinhua news agency reported yesterday.
China has reportedly been carrying out large-scale joint sea, land and air drills around Dong-shan island.
Hong Kong papers have said these war games, the year's largest, were aimed at simulating an invasion of Taiwan.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Nipah virus infection is to be officially listed as a category 5 notifiable infectious disease in Taiwan in March, while clinical treatment guidelines are being formulated, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. With Nipah infections being reported in other countries and considering its relatively high fatality rate, the centers on Jan. 16 announced that it would be listed as a notifiable infectious disease to bolster the nation’s systematic early warning system and increase public awareness, the CDC said. Bangladesh reported four fatal cases last year in separate districts, with three linked to raw date palm sap consumption, CDC Epidemic Intelligence
Taiwanese and US defense groups are collaborating to introduce deployable, semi-autonomous manufacturing systems for drones and components in a boost to the nation’s supply chain resilience. Taiwan’s G-Tech Optroelectronics Corp subsidiary GTOC and the US’ Aerkomm Inc on Friday announced an agreement with fellow US-based Firestorm Lab to adopt the latter’s xCell, a technology featuring 3D printers fitted in 6.1m container units. The systems enable aerial platforms and parts to be produced in high volumes from dispersed nodes capable of rapid redeployment, to minimize the risk of enemy strikes and to meet field requirements, they said. Firestorm chief technology officer Ian Muceus said
MORE FALL: An investigation into one of Xi’s key cronies, part of a broader ‘anti-corruption’ drive, indicates that he might have a deep distrust in the military, an expert said China’s latest military purge underscores systemic risks in its shift from collective leadership to sole rule under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), and could disrupt its chain of command and military capabilities, a national security official said yesterday. If decisionmaking within the Chinese Communist Party has become “irrational” under one-man rule, the Taiwan Strait and the regional situation must be approached with extreme caution, given unforeseen risks, they added. The anonymous official made the remarks as China’s Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia (張又俠) and Joint Staff Department Chief of Staff Liu Zhenli (劉振立) were reportedly being investigated for suspected “serious