Minister of National Defense Kao Kuang-chi (高廣圻) and other senior military officials came under scrutiny yesterday, with legislators questioning the combat readiness of the nation’s armed forces given the perceived threat against the frontline island of Kinmen, which is close to Xiamen, China.
Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) Legislator Chou Ni-an (周倪安) said Kinmen’s security is now in jeopardy as the armed forces have no defense against a surprise attack.
She said that the number of Chinese visitors to Kinmen has spiked to record levels, with 150,000 visitors last month — a daily average of about 5,000 people.
“This sharp increase is because our government has opened the gate to Kinmen for the Chinese. It is all due to the new policy of granting visas on arrival — specific to Chinese tourists — which was implemented in February,” Chou said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee. “This represents a serious security threat to our sovereignty. Currently we do not have many troops in Kinmen — maybe only a few thousand. They are of insufficient strength to defend Kinmen and also have no combat readiness plan in case of hostile action.”
Chou said it is possible for China’s People’s Liberation Army to mount a surprise invasion by posing as Chinese tourists.
Kao said that since Kinmen was opened up to Chinese visitors, the armed forces have adjusted troop deployments and defense contingency plans to deal with a potential military threat.
“Our military and intelligence units are always on alert and ready to monitor suspicious Chinese tourists,” Kao said.
Chou has asked Kao and other military officials to present the legislature with contingency plans to counter possible hostile action on Kinmen.
STAY AWAY: An official said people should avoid disturbing snakes, as most do not actively attack humans, but would react defensively if threatened Taitung County authorities yesterday urged the public to stay vigilant and avoid disturbing snakes in the wild, following five reported snakebite cases in the county so far this year. Taitung County Fire Department secretary Lin Chien-cheng (林建誠) said two of the cases were in Donghe Township (東河) and involved the Taiwan habus, one person was bit by a Chinese pit viper near the South Link Railway and the remaining two were caused by unidentified snakes. He advised residents near fields to be cautious of snakes hiding in shady indoor areas, especially when entering or leaving their homes at night. In case of a
A tropical disturbance off the southeastern coast of the Philippines might become the first typhoon of the western Pacific typhoon season, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The system lacks a visible center and how it would develop is only likely to become clear on Sunday or Monday, the CWA said, adding that it was not yet possible to forecast the potential typhoon's effect on Taiwan. The American Meteorological Society defines a tropical disturbance as a system made up of showers and thunderstorms that lasts for at least 24 hours and does not have closed wind circulation.
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Credit departments of farmers’ and fishers’ associations blocked a total of more than NT$180 million (US$6.01 million) from being lost to scams last year, National Police Agency (NPA) data showed. The Agricultural Finance Agency (AFA) said last week that staff of farmers’ and fishers’ associations’ credit departments are required to implement fraud prevention measures when they serve clients at the counter. They would ask clients about personal financial management activities whenever they suspect there might be a fraud situation, and would immediately report the incident to local authorities, which would send police officers to the site to help, it said. NPA data showed
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