China’s medium and long-range ballistic missiles might be targeting other nations, but they are still a threat to Taiwan, Ministry of National Defense spokesman Major General David Lo (羅紹和) said yesterday.
“Although China’s medium and long-range ballistic missiles are aimed at other countries, they still pose a threat to Taiwan. We hope Taiwanese understand this, even if China’s short-range missiles are the biggest threat to Taiwan,” Lo said after a ministry news briefing.
Lo was responding to an 8,000-word report published on Monday by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Daily detailing the strategic missile forces under China’s Second Artillery Corps.
He described the report as an attempt to intimidate Taiwanese psychologically.
“This was not conducive to cross-strait harmony and will even provoke resentment among people in Taiwan,” he said.
To counter the Chinese military, the ministry has in recent years tried to establish a comprehensive anti-ballistic-missile defense system to better protect national security, Lo said.
In response to a question about a Defense News report that the navy is planning to replace its ageing fleet of MD 500 helicopters with Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk multi-mission aircraft,
Lo said the navy needs to buy next-generation anti-submarine helicopters to meet its needs.
At the moment, the MH-60R is not the only option for the navy. It is conducting an across-the-board assessment before identifying a specific anti-submarine helicopter that best serves its interests and combat needs, Lo said.
US President Donald Trump said "it’s up to" Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) what China does on Taiwan, but that he would be "very unhappy" with a change in the "status quo," the New York Times said in an interview published yesterday. Xi "considers it to be a part of China, and that’s up to him what he’s going to be doing," Trump told the newspaper on Wednesday. "But I’ve expressed to him that I would be very unhappy if he did that, and I don’t think he’ll do that," he added. "I hope he doesn’t do that." Trump made the comments in
NOT AN OPENING: Trump’s violation of international law does not affect China’s consideration in attacking Taiwan; Beijing lacks capability, not precedent, an official said Taiwanese officials see the US’ capture of the president of Venezuela as a powerful deterrent to Beijing’s aggression and a timely reminder of the US’ ability to defeat militaries equipped with Chinese-made weapons. The strikes that toppled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro signaled to authoritarian leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), US President Donald Trump’s willingness to use military might for international affairs core to US interests, one senior official in Taipei’s security circle said. That reassured Taiwan, the person said. Taipei has also dismissed the idea that Trump’s apparent violation of international law could embolden Beijing, said the official, who was not
A cold surge advisory was today issued for 18 cities and counties across Taiwan, with temperatures of below 10°C forecast during the day and into tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. New Taipei City, Taipei, Taoyuan and Hsinchu, Miaoli and Yilan counties are expected to experience sustained temperatures of 10°C or lower, the CWA said. Temperatures are likely to temporarily drop below 10°C in most other areas, except Taitung, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, CWA data showed. The cold weather is being caused by a strong continental cold air mass, combined with radiative cooling, a process in which heat escapes from
Snow this morning fell on Alishan for the first time in seven years, as a strong continental cold air mass sent temperatures plunging across Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The Alishan weather station, located at an elevation of about 2,200m in central Taiwan, recorded snowfall from 8:55am to 9:15am, when the temperature dropped to about 1°C, the CWA said. With increased moisture and low temperatures in the high-altitude Alishan area, the conditions were favorable for snow, CWA forecaster Tsai Yi-chi (蔡伊其) said. The last time snow fell at the Alishan weather station was on Jan. 10, 2018, while graupel fell there
RSS