Plans are under way to extend the compulsory military service to one year, as the current four months would not be sufficient if a conflict breaks out, Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) told the legislature yesterday.
At the request of lawmakers, Kuo presented a summary work report for last year at a hearing of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, with follow-up deliberations on military service and combat training.
In response to queries by Democratic Progressive Party legislators Lo Chih-cheng (羅致政) and Lin Ching-yi (林靜儀), Chiu confirmed that a Ministry of National Defense task force is studying preparations for extending conscription from four months to one year for all able-bodied men.
Photo: CNA
The ministry can implement the policy without amending the law on national conscription, which would take too long, Chiu said, adding that it would be best to change the policy as soon as possible.
This would be possible by returning to the previous definitions of “active service” and “military service” as mandated in the Act of Military Service System (兵役法), he said.
Under Article 16 of the act, standing soldier service is classified as follows: active service, or serving in a military camp for one year; military training in a camp for no more than four months; and reserve service for those discharged from active service or who have completed military training, until retirement age.
If a conflict breaks out, four months of military training would be insufficient, as the soldiers would not be able to deal with contingencies during a combat situation, Chiu said, adding that “alternative military service” would be retained, but with a reduced quota.
The ministry has no need to drill the men taking part in “alternative military service” in assault rifle use and combat training for those already working in areas such as the medical science and high-tech sectors, as they can use their professional skills to support and bolster Taiwan’s defense forces, he said.
In his report, Chiu said that China has escalated the frequency of its aircraft sorties, especially southwest of Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ), with China in effect undertaking “training exercises” and “warfare simulations” in the region.
“Through the whole of last year, China flew more than 900 aircraft into our ADIZ southwest sector,” the report said. “Recently, it has engaged in ‘gray zone’ attack flight patterns around our outlying islands, while [continuing its] cognitive warfare and disinformation campaign, putting pressure on Taiwan’s air defense systems and posing increasingly serious challenges to our national security.”
Separately, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Tai-san (邱太三) told lawmakers that he doubted the veracity of a supposed leaked document by the Russian secret service saying that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had considered launching an invasion of Taiwan in autumn.
“We should not be fooled by such a speculative report of which no one can yet ascertain its authenticity,” Chiu Tai-san told a meeting of the legislature’s Internal Administration Committee.
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