The Chinese military is to launch sometime this week two new exercises in different areas to coincide with the ongoing Dong Hai No. 7 exercise along the southeastern coast, defense sources said yesterday.
The two new exercises are to be held separately in the northern Jinan military region and the southern Guangzhou military region.
Intelligence information shows that these exercises might kick off soon, since a considerable number of troops in the two military regions have been put on standby.
The exact number of troops to be involved in the two exercises has yet to be found out, sources said. It is also not clear whether the two exercises might be intended to intimidate Taiwan.
A defense official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said if the two exercises are targeted at Taiwan, it could be serious.
"Our understanding of the Chinese military is that if they are to attack Taiwan, they will use mainly troops from the Jinan and Guangzhou military regions," the officials said. "Troops in the Nanking military region are to be back-up forces."
"That's why we do not worry so much about the Dong Hai No. 7 exercise that has been held over the past three months off coastal provinces, which fall into the Nanking military region," he said.
"The Dong Hai No. 7 exercise is focused on training regular troops and militiamen for joint operations in a war in the Taiwan Strait. Such operations are to be used to distract the Taiwan military," he said.
"The real threat will come from the Jinan and Guangzhou military regions, whose tasks are to attack Taiwan from the northern and southern sides."
The scenario was simulated in the computerized war games that were a part of the Hankuang No. 18 exercise in May.
In the war games, the Taiwan military posing as the blue army was not able to stop the red army -- the Chinese military -- from landing on the island because the landing troops did not come from the initially expected directions: coastal provinces closest to Taiwan.
Given the fact, the military is not at ease about the two new exercises to be held in the Jinan and Guangzhou military regions.
In response, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) recalled most of its important officials from holidays on Sunday for an emergency meeting.
MND's spokesman Major General Huang Sui-sheng (
As to China's reported intensification of military exercises across the Taiwan Strait, the MND made the standard answer that everything is under control.
The military leadership held another emergency meeting yesterday, but the MND refused to comment on it.
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