Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) yesterday praised Taiwanese troops for their work over the past 10 days, as the longest-ever live-fire component of Taiwan’s annual military exercises concluded early yesterday.
In a teleconference to the armed forces, Koo officially announced the end of the 10-day, nine-night Han Kuang exercises that began on Wednesday last week.
That was double the length of previous live-fire segments, which typically lasted five days and four nights, the ministry said in a statement.
Photo courtesy of the Dongyin Area Command via CNA
Koo praised the participating troops, in particular those in central and southern Taiwan, given that aside from joining the exercises, they also helped people in regions affected by Typhoon Danas.
Koo said they served as an example of military-civilian cooperation, as they not only helped defend the country, but also people affected by the typhoon, the statement said.
The 10-day drills saw the debuts of US-supplied High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, TOW 2B anti-tank missiles, newly purchased uncrewed aviation vehicles and a domestically built land-based version of the Sky Sword II (陸射劍二) missile, Koo said.
The exercises also mobilized the 206th Reserve Brigade, he added.
Up to 22,000 reservists participated in the 10-day drills, which tested their ability to provide brigade-sized rather than battalion-sized support, and capabilities to serve as a stronger backup to the regular troops, Koo said.
The defense chief also said that due to the “unscripted” nature of this year’s drills and because military vehicles frequently drove on the streets alongside civilian vehicles, there were several traffic incidents involving military vehicles.
Koo has asked senior military officials to look into the matter to prevent reoccurrences, the ministry said.
At least seven traffic incidents involving military vehicles or personnel were reported by local media over the past 10 days, resulting in minor injuries to five soldiers.
The first three days of Taiwan’s military exercises focused on countering China’s “gray zone” tactics, the ministry said.
The drills then transitioned to their “full-scale combat” phase, which included joint anti-landing operations on Sunday, coastal and beachhead combat on Monday, in-depth defense on Tuesday and Wednesday, and protracted warfare on Thursday and yesterday.
The final day of the exercises saw urban resilience drills conducted across eastern Taiwan and the outlying islands.
Elsewhere on the final day, personnel executed defense-in-depth tactics and simulated urban combat scenarios. Garrison troops also participated in live-fire exercises near the Taipei MRT Red Line.
At 10am yesterday, urban resilience drills were held in Hualien County, Taitung County and the outlying counties of Penghu, Kinmen and Lienchiang.
In Lienchiang, the army’s Matsu Defense Command worked with the county government to evacuate civilians to shelters.
In Hualien, police cleared roads and directed civilians to shelters, while a missile strike simulation was held at the train station in Jian Township (吉安), requiring emergency services.
In Penghu, nearly 300 tourists sought refuge in the Pier 3 shopping mall, where fire-fighting robots were deployed to the Magong power plant for disaster relief
From 6am Thursday to 6am yesterday, 11 Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft were detected around Taiwan, with seven crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait, the ministry said.
Eleven Chinese PLA vessels were also spotted in the Strait, it said.
The ministry said that the armed forces were continuing to monitor the situation and remain ready to respond as necessary.
Additional reporting by Yu Chao-fu, Hua Meng-ching
and Fang Wei-li
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