The military yesterday demonstrated its precision missile capabilities by firing its indigenous Tien Kung III (Sky Bow III) land-based surface-to-air missile and US-made Patriot PAC-2 surface-to-air missiles in drills open to the media.
The exercises were held in areas around Jiupeng Military Base in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州). Two PAC-2 missiles and one Sky Bow III were fired and hit their respective target drones.
Local media speculated that the military also test-launched the expanded version of Hsiung Feng II-E (Brave Wind II-E) from the same site earlier yesterday, but that was not officially open to the media.
Photo: Reuters
The Hsiung Feng II-E is a surface-to-surface land-attack cruise missile system. Its expanded version reportedly has a range of 1,200km, meaning that Chinese inland provinces, for instance, would be within the missile’s reach.
Without confirming nor denying the test launch of the Hsiung Feng II-E, military spokesman Major General Sun Li-fang (孫立方) said that all of the military’s live-fire drills were conducted in accordance with its annual plan.
“Some of the tested missiles are more sensitive, so we will not comment on what kind of missiles were used in such drills,” Sun said.
Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times
“All the missiles that were fired today have smoothly hit their mark and have proven two points — the first being that the training of our soldiers is very solid, the other being that our weapons systems have been verified during this process of firing missiles,” Sun said.
The drill area in Jiupeng Base has for decades been used by the military and its top weapons development unit, the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology, but the military has seldom made such missile drills public.
The last time precision live-fire missile drills were open to the media at Jiupeng Base was in 2012.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of National Defense early yesterday said that it had spotted five Chinese military jets and 11 ships close to Taiwan’s shores over the previous 24 hours.
One aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait, it said.
While its military is dwarfed by China’s, Taiwan has bought high-tech weaponry from the US, revitalized its domestic arms industry and extended the length of mandatory military service from four months to one year.
The US is bound by its own laws to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself and considers all threats to the nation a matter of great concern.
Additional reporting by AP and Reuters
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