Elite troops from the nation’s military displayed combat drills yesterday, with aircraft flyovers, attack helicopter maneuvers and a procession of advanced weapons and tanks to mark the 70-year anniversary of the end of World War II.
Taking place at the Hukou Army Base in Hsinchu County, the event was presided over by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who was joined by senior government officials, legislators, foreign officials and 93 WWII veterans.
Ministry of National Defense officials said the event was part of the annual Han Kuang military exercises, adding that it was a defense capabilities review, not an official National Day military parade.
Photo: AFP
Among the new weapons and hardware, the US-made MIM-104F Patriot PAC-3 missile system was publicly displayed in Taiwan for the first time.
It was presented during a procession alongside domestically produced Tien Chien (“Sky Sword”) and Tien Kung ( “Sky Bow”) missiles and the Hsiung Feng (“Brave Wind”) II and III anti-ship missiles to showcase the development of the nation’s tactical missile defense against enemy attack from the air or from the sea.
Taiwanese pilots of special airborne units made close fly-bys and executed maneuvers with AH-64E Apache attack helicopters, UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters, AH-1W Super Cobra attack helicopters, CH-47SD Chinook transport helicopters and other rotary wing aircraft made in the US.
Photo: AFP
Ma lauded the contribution of veterans who fought in the “War of Resistance against Japan,” as World War II was known in China at the time.
A total of 134 WWII veteran soldiers attended yesterday’s event, and 10 representatives received commemorative medals made by the ministry in recognition of their wartime service.
Twenty-four of the elderly veterans, dressed in modern replicas of WWII-era Republic of China military uniforms, rode in a motorcade during the procession, receiving salutations and applause from the audience.
Ambassadors from Paraguay, Palau, Kiribati and the Solomon Islands attended the event, according to ministry officials, and were joined by diplomatic and trade representatives from South Korea, Australia, Germany, France and Russia.
Makoto Ogata, an attache with the Taipei office of the Interchange Association, Japan, also took part. He is a retired officer in the Japanese military.
Additional reporting by CNA
INVESTIGATION: The case is the latest instance of a DPP figure being implicated in an espionage network accused of allegedly leaking information to Chinese intelligence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) member Ho Jen-chieh (何仁傑) was detained and held incommunicado yesterday on suspicion of spying for China during his tenure as assistant to then-minister of foreign affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮). The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said Ho was implicated during its investigation into alleged spying activities by former Presidential Office consultant Wu Shang-yu (吳尚雨). Prosecutors said there is reason to believe Ho breached the National Security Act (國家安全法) by leaking classified Ministry of Foreign Affairs information to Chinese intelligence. Following interrogation, prosecutors petitioned the Taipei District Court to detain Ho, citing concerns over potential collusion or tampering of evidence. The
‘FORM OF PROTEST’: The German Institute Taipei said it was ‘shocked’ to see Nazi symbolism used in connection with political aims as it condemned the incident Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 yesterday amid an outcry over a Nazi armband he wore to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case on Tuesday night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and apparently covering the book with a coat. This is a serious international scandal and Chinese
Seventy percent of middle and elementary schools now conduct English classes entirely in English, the Ministry of Education said, as it encourages schools nationwide to adopt this practice Minister of Education (MOE) Cheng Ying-yao (鄭英耀) is scheduled to present a report on the government’s bilingual education policy to the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee today. The report would outline strategies aimed at expanding access to education, reducing regional disparities and improving talent cultivation. Implementation of bilingual education policies has varied across local governments, occasionally drawing public criticism. For example, some schools have required teachers of non-English subjects to pass English proficiency
TRADE: The premier pledged safeguards on ‘Made in Taiwan’ labeling, anti-dumping measures and stricter export controls to strengthen its position in trade talks Products labeled “made in Taiwan” must be genuinely made in Taiwan, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday, vowing to enforce strict safeguards against “origin laundering” and initiate anti-dumping investigations to prevent China dumping its products in Taiwan. Cho made the remarks in a discussion session with representatives from industries in Kaohsiung. In response to the US government’s recent announcement of “reciprocal” tariffs on its trading partners, President William Lai (賴清德) and Cho last week began a series of consultations with industry leaders nationwide to gather feedback and address concerns. Taiwanese and US officials held a videoconference on Friday evening to discuss the
RSS