The military may find it difficult to recruit volunteer soldiers, since many applicants are unable to pass fitness tests for the program now being run on a trial basis, officials said.
The physical tests, held on Sunday at three different locations, were considered by the military to be relatively easy, officials said. But many applicants were unable to do even two horizontal bar pull-ups within one minute.
The pull-up was one of the three physical fitness tests that each applicant had to pass to become a volunteer soldier.
The other events were sit-ups and a 1,600m run, officials said.
The normal requirement for a conscript is four pull-ups in one minute, officials said.
A lieutenant colonel with the Ministry of National Defense (MND) lamented the results: "It is unimaginable that this generation is so weak," the unnamed officer said. "We really don't know when we can get enough personnel for the volunteer-soldier program."
The program, to be launched in September on an experimental basis for the first year, offers more than 600 positions to men between the ages of 19 and 26, officials said.
The positions are in an army missile battalion, an air force aircraft repair and maintenance group and a marine infantry battalion.
More than 600 applicants signed up to take the tests, but only 430 showed up, officials said.
The test also included a written examination. A volunteer had to pass the written and physical tests to be accepted into the program, officials said. Many of those who got high scores in written tests failed the physical fitness test, officials said.
Applicants for the volunteer marine corps infantry battalion fared better, with over 170 applicants being active-duty conscripts, they all passed the physical fitness, officials said.
MND officials said that they are happy to see active-duty personnel join the program since they have already received some training.
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
LIKE-MINDED COUNTRIES: Despite the threats from outside, Taiwan and Lithuania thrived and developed their economies, former president Tsai Ing-wen said Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Saturday thanked Lithuania for its support of Taiwan, saying that both countries are united as partners in defending democracy. Speaking at a reception organized by the Lithuania-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group welcoming her on her first visit to the Baltic state, Tsai said that while she was president from 2016 to last year, many Lithuanian “friends” visited Taiwan. “And I told myself I have to be here. I am very happy that I am here, a wonderful country and wonderful people,” Tsai said. Taiwan and Lithuania are in similar situations as both are neighbors to authoritarian countries, she
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
Taiwanese indie band Sunset Rollercoaster and South Korean outfit Hyukoh collectively received the most nominations at this year’s Golden Melody Awards, earning a total of seven nods from the jury on Wednesday. The bands collaborated on their 2024 album AAA, which received nominations for best band, best album producer, best album design and best vocal album recording. “Young Man,” a single from the album, earned nominations for song of the year and best music video, while another track, “Antenna,” also received a best music video nomination. Late Hong Kong-American singer Khalil Fong (方大同) was named the jury award winner for his 2024 album
RSS