Hosting foreign military advisers is within the scope of regular exchanges, Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) said yesterday after a US defense media outlet said that US Army Special Forces are to be deployed for training missions in Kinmen and Penghu counties.
Speaking on the sidelines of a legislative session, Chiu told reporters that the armed forces conduct exchanges with foreign militaries to find “blindspots and flaws” in Taiwan’s defense preparations and design, and “to learn from the strengths of others.”
As for the report’s claim that Taiwan’s Aviation and Special Forces Command has proposed buying the Black Hornet Nano, a micro drone that the US military uses, Chiu said there were “no specific talks on procuring arms” in connection with the presence of the US military advisers.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
SOFREP, an online outlet founded by US special operations veterans, on Friday last week said that Washington has launched a “significant military collaboration” with Taiwan involving the deployment of special forces in Kimen and Penghu.
Citing the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act, SOFREP said that a growing presence of a liaison element is currently in Taiwan to plan for deploying small detachments of the 1st Special Forces Group’s 2nd Battalion.
The detachments, consisting of three soldiers each, are to become permanent training observers of Taiwan’s elite Airborne Special Service Company and the 101st Amphibious Reconnaissance Battalion, the report said.
The US advisers would be involved in regular training exercises, creating joint operational guidelines and training manuals, and providing instructions for operating the Black Hornet Nano, which Taiwan plans to buy from the US via direct military sale, it said.
The US’ plans mark a departure from the previous practice of dispatching frequent, but impermanent training and observation missions to Taiwan, it said.
Asked to comment at a routine news conference, Ministry of Foreign Affairs North American Affairs Department Director-General Wang Liang-yu (王良玉) said that the “six assurances” and the Taiwan Relations Act form the basis of US security guarantees to the nation, which remain strong.
The ministry has no additional comment on the content of the report, she added.
Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a fellow at the Institute of National Defense and Security Research, was cited as saying that the US Army Special Forces are known for their defensive prowess.
The integration of the US special forces into Taiwan’s special reconnaissance and amphibious operations units would augment the nation’s capability to counter incursions by hostile forces, the report cited him as saying.
One of two tropical depressions that formed off Taiwan yesterday morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. The weather system is expected to move northwest as it builds momentum, possibly intensifying this weekend into a typhoon, which would be called Mitag, Lee said. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is forecast to approach the southeast of Taiwan on Monday next week and pass through the Bashi Channel
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency as well as long-term residency in Taiwan has decreased, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday, adding that the reduction of Chinese spouses staying or living in Taiwan is only one facet reflecting the general decrease in the number of people willing to get married in Taiwan. The number of Chinese spouses applying for dependent residency last year was 7,123, down by 2,931, or 29.15 percent, from the previous year. The same census showed that the number of Chinese spouses applying for long-term residency and receiving approval last year stood at 2,973, down 1,520,
EASING ANXIETY: The new guide includes a section encouraging people to discuss the threat of war with their children and teach them how to recognize disinformation The Ministry of National Defense’s All-Out Defense Mobilization Agency yesterday released its updated civil defense handbook, which defines the types of potential military aggression by an “enemy state” and self-protection tips in such scenarios. The agency has released three editions of the handbook since 2022, covering information from the preparation of go-bags to survival tips during natural disasters and war. Compared with the previous edition, released in 2023, the latest version has a clearer focus on wartime scenarios. It includes a section outlining six types of potential military threats Taiwan could face, including destruction of critical infrastructure and most undersea cables, resulting in
RSS