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Lawmakers blast slack island defenses

Legislators yesterday slammed the Ministry of National Defense over the protection of Taiwan's outlying islands, questioning whether there were enough troops stationed on the islands to hold off an enemy invasion after the ministry withdrew marines from the Pratas and Spratly islands in 1999.

In response, officials said the ministry had plans to redeploy marines on the islands, but did not provide a timetable.

Yesterday, during a National Defense Committee question-and-answer session at the Legislative Yuan, opposition legislators said that were China to attack Taiwan, it may first launch attacks on the outlying islands, but at the moment, only the national coastguard administration protects the area.

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lin Yu-fang (林郁方) said that other countries stationed troops on surrounding islands because of their strategic importance, but Taiwan had withdrawn its marines from the Pratas and Spratly groups.

The ministry withdrew marines from the islands in 1999 citing logistical difficulties.

Lin questioned whether the islands had enough protection to hold off enemies until ships with reinforcements reached them.

Deputy Minister of National Defense General Chu Kai-sheng (朱凱生) admitted that it would take two days for ships to reach the islands and that not enough coastguard personnel were there to protect the islands.

Chu also said that strategic petroleum reserves for the outlying islands could last half a year but only for 90 days for Taiwan proper.

The navy could hold out for two weeks after any first-wave of attacks from China, Chu said.

KMT Legislator Shuai Hua-min (帥化民) said that China was not necessarily the only threat and reminded the ministry that the Diaoyutai Island group may also be problematic.

The ministry had to develop better strategic planning and not wait until it was too late, Shuai said.

KMT Legislator Joanna Lei (雷倩) said that the Daioyutai (釣魚台), Pratas and Kinmen Islands were beyond the military's Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ).

This defense identification zone, which is almost exclusively over water, serves as a national defense boundary for all air traffic. Any aircraft that wishes to fly across the boundary must file for permission to do so with the appropriate authority before the flight.

Any attacks within the ADIZ zone would launch a national security alert, but since these islands were outside the boundary, Lei said that the zone was too small.

Chu assured legislators that the zone was closely monitored at all times.

He also denied media allegations that Minister of National Defense Lee Jye (李傑) was going to leave his post in May after legislators asked why Lee was not present at the session.
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