Taiwanese troops last month attended military exercises led by the US National Guard in Michigan, the Sankei Shimbun reported on Saturday.
More than 7,000 soldiers from several countries participated in the exercises, which were held from Aug. 5 to Aug. 19, the Japanese daily reported.
Following the joint exercises last summer, Taiwan and the US have continued to deepen military exchanges and enhance interoperability, it said.
Photo: Daniel Ceng, AP
It is unclear how many Taiwanese troops attended the exercises, but the scale was larger than previous training with the US, the Sankei Shimbun said.
Taiwan could also send more troops to attend similar training, it added.
It was reported in July that the armed forces sent the entire joint battalion of the army’s 333rd Infantry Brigade to Michigan for training and to participate in the summer Northern Strike exercise organized by the US.
The Sankei Shimbun said that to not provoke China too much, the Michigan exercises were led by the National Guard — a strategic reserve force that is normally overseen by US state governments — instead of the US Armed Forces.
The US National Guard also helped train Ukrainian soldiers after Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in 2014, it said.
US President Joe Biden’s administration in February said that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has instructed his nation’s military to “be ready by 2027” to invade Taiwan.
To prevent Xi from taking over Taiwan by force, the US continues to expand support to bolster Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities, the Sankei Shimbun said.
The US announced military assistance of US$345 million to Taiwan in July through the Presidential Drawdown Authority, which requires no approval from the US Congress. It also approved a military transfer of US$80 million under its Foreign Military Financing program last week.
In Taipei, the Army Command Headquarters yesterday said it “has no comment” on the report, stating only that “the armed forces continue to strengthen combat readiness and improve soldier training.”
As early as 2021 foreign media have reported on joint military training between Taiwan and the US at Camp Grayling in Michigan, Institute of National Defense and Security Research fellow Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲) said.
Asked in July whether the US National Guard helped train Taiwanese troops, US Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner said discussions about the issue should be kept behind closed doors, Su said.
Judging by Ratner’s response, in which he did not deny the issue, and the Sankei Shimbun’s report, the training “probably happened,” Su said.
The training demonstrated mutual trust between Taiwan and the US, and could also be seen as military diplomacy, he said.
Institute for National Defense and Security Research analyst Shu Hsiao-huang (舒孝煌) said the armed forces could benefit hugely by learning from the combat experience and tactics of the US National Guard.
High-level generals should also participate in the training, he said.
In other news, Jim Hockenhull, commander of the British Armed Forces’ Strategic Command, told Nikkei Asia yesterday that cutting-edge technologies would be crucial in preventing a conflict in the Taiwan Strait.
Hockenhull said that it would require “advanced military capabilities that go beyond ships, tanks or aircraft” to deter a Chinese invasion of Taiwan.
The UK and Japan could “generate even greater and even better capabilities, which play a part in any deterrence approach” by bolstering cooperation on advanced technologies and cybersecurity to guard against disinformation campaigns and cyberattacks, he added.
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in