The Ministry of National Defense said Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missile batteries have been deployed on the east coast in response to an increased Chinese military presence in the area.
To improve integrated air defense capabilities, the ministry has deployed missiles to Hualien and Taitung counties, and merged the Air Defense Missile Command with the air force to streamline the chain of command, a ministry report submitted to the Legislative Yuan said.
The reorganization and relocation was ordered after the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted several long-distance naval and aviation training missions — featuring an aircraft carrier and fleets of nuclear-capable bombers — in the East China Sea, South China Sea, East Indian Ocean and western Pacific Ocean to demonstrate its long-range power projection capabilities and Beijing’s ambition to dominate the Asia-Pacific region.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
Annual military exercises would test the effectiveness of the deployments, the ministry said.
It is the first time the ministry has confirmed the deployments, after speculation emerged following the publication of photographs last month showing missiles in the military’s air defense bases in eastern Taiwan.
The report also announced a doctrinal shift from “effective deterrence” to “multiple deterrence.”
Photo: Military News Agency
The ministry said that it would develop the defense industry to ensure self-sufficiency and national security.
A quadrennial defense review, along with three defense plans that are expected to be the guidelines for the nation’s military buildup, are to be submitted to the Legislative Yuan by March 19.
The military is to conduct new exercises, including integrated air-and-sea training, rescue missions, fishing boat escort missions and supply missions in response to the PLA’s actions.
In addition to field exercises, computer-aided simulations are to be part of regular armed forces exercises.
A tactical engagement simulation system has been built for the army, and the ministry is exploring creating new simulation systems using virtual and augmented-reality technologies.
Measures have been taken to improve the military’s digital warfare capabilities this year, with Academia Sinica and the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology forming partnerships with the military, the ministry added.
The Air Defense Missile Command was yesterday merged with the air force at a handover ceremony at the command’s Taishan District (泰山) headquarters in New Taipei City.
The command, to be headed by Colonel Yu Jen-ming (游仁明), is expected to merge with the Air Defense Artillery Command to improve operational efficiency.
“The missile command is a high-tech, combat-ready unit and it is one of the most important components of the integrated air defense system,” Air Force Commander General Shen Yi-ming (沈一鳴) said.
The merger would see the transfer of PAC-3, Tien Kung anti-ballistic missiles and Hawk anti-aircraft missiles, as well as tactical counterstrike missiles and Hsiung Feng 2E cruise missiles, to the air force.
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
The government is considering polices to increase rental subsidies for people living in social housing who get married and have children, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. During an interview with the Plain Law Movement (法律白話文) podcast, Cho said that housing prices cannot be brought down overnight without affecting banks and mortgages. Therefore, the government is focusing on providing more aid for young people by taking 3 to 5 percent of urban renewal projects and zone expropriations and using that land for social housing, he said. Single people living in social housing who get married and become parents could obtain 50 percent more
DEMOGRAPHICS: Robotics is the most promising answer to looming labor woes, the long-term care system and national contingency response, an official said Taiwan is to launch a five-year plan to boost the robotics industry in a bid to address labor shortages stemming from a declining and aging population, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. The government approved the initiative, dubbed the Smart Robotics Industry Promotion Plan, via executive order, senior officials told a post-Cabinet meeting news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s population decline would strain the economy and the nation’s ability to care for vulnerable and elderly people, said Peter Hong (洪樂文), who heads the National Science and Technology Council’s (NSTC) Department of Engineering and Technologies. Projections show that the proportion of Taiwanese 65 or older would
Democracies must remain united in the face of a shifting geopolitical landscape, former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) told the Copenhagen Democracy Summit on Tuesday, while emphasizing the importance of Taiwan’s security to the world. “Taiwan’s security is essential to regional stability and to defending democratic values amid mounting authoritarianism,” Tsai said at the annual forum in the Danish capital. Noting a “new geopolitical landscape” in which global trade and security face “uncertainty and unpredictability,” Tsai said that democracies must remain united and be more committed to building up resilience together in the face of challenges. Resilience “allows us to absorb shocks, adapt under
RSS