The Ministry of National Defense (MND) yesterday dismissed as “groundless” and “pure speculation” a newspaper report that Taiwan’s navy could offer humanitarian assistance if a war were to break out between the US and North Korea.
The Chinese-language Apple Daily yesterday published a report citing an unidentified military official as saying that the US military has sent a team to Taiwan to evaluate the nation’s ability to set up field hospitals during wartime.
The US team boarded the locally built Panshih (磐石), the navy’s only supply vessel with a small hospital on board, to see if it could be used as a field hospital in wartime, the report said.
The official was cited as saying that the nation’s military could offer humanitarian assistance to the US if an all-out war broke out between the US and North Korea, resulting in heavy casualties.
The ministry released a statement dismissing the report, saying it was “fictitious” and “far from the truth.”
It called on media outlets to verify their information with authorities before publishing groundless reports that could mislead the public.
The Panshih was built by CSBC Corp Taiwan, the nation’s only listed shipbuilder, at a cost of NT$4.09 billion (US$136 million at the current exchange rate) and christened in November 2013.
It is used to transport fuel, ammunition and other supplies to warships in wartime, the navy said.
In peacetime, it is used to carry supplies, conduct maritime rescue operations and provide humanitarian assistance, it said.
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