Live-fire drills are to be held from July 25 to 29 to simulate the defense of the Port of Taipei against a Chinese attack, a military officer said yesterday.
The drills are part of the annual Han Kuang military exercises and would focus on defense scenarios of the port in New Taipei City’s Bali District (八里) and the nearby Tamsui River (淡水河) estuary, the officer said on condition of anonymity, as they were not authorized to speak to the media.
If the port and the estuary were to be captured by invading Chinese forces, they could unload military equipment near the capital, the officer said.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The drills would simulate Chinese forces attacking with fighter jets and helicopters, as well as a joint counterattack by Taiwan’s armed forces, they said.
Another military source earlier said that if Chinese forces were to capture the mouth of the Tamsui River, which is 8km from the Guandu Bridge connecting Taipei and New Taipei City, they could advance toward the headquarters of the nation’s major political institutions and farther into northern Taiwan.
Blowing up the bridge has been part of defense simulations over the past few years, the second source said.
The annual exercises are intended to improve the military’s’ capability to engage in asymmetric, cognitive, information and electronic warfare, and mobilize reserve forces to enhance overall defense readiness by incorporating civilians, said Major General Lin Wen-huang (林文皇), who is in charge of combat and planning affairs at the Ministry of National Defense.
This year’s live-fire drills would also focus on eliminating invading forces at sea and along the coastline, Lin told a news conference in May, adding that the three branches of the military and a wide range of weapons systems would be deployed.
The Han Kuang exercises, first held in 1984, are Taiwan’s most important military drills and seek to test the country’s combat readiness in the event of a Chinese attack.
This year’s tabletop wargames phase, the first of the two-part exercises, took place from May 16 to 20.
The first global hotel Keys Selection by the Michelin Guide includes four hotels in Taiwan, Michelin announced yesterday. All four received the “Michelin One Key,” indicating guests are to experience a “very special stay” at any of the locations as the establishments are “a true gem with personality. Service always goes the extra mile, and the hotel provides much more than others in its price range.” Of the four hotels, three are located in Taipei and one in Taichung. In Taipei, the One Key accolades were awarded to the Capella Taipei, Kimpton Da An Taipei and Mandarin Oriental Taipei. Capella Taipei was described by
EVA Airways today confirmed the death of a flight attendant on Saturday upon their return to Taiwan and said an internal investigation has been launched, as criticism mounted over a social media post accusing the airline of failing to offer sufficient employee protections. According to the post, the flight attendant complained of feeling sick on board a flight, but was unable to take sick leave or access medical care. The crew member allegedly did not receive assistance from the chief purser, who failed to heed their requests for medical attention or call an ambulance once the flight landed, the post said. As sick
The Taichung District Court yesterday confirmed its final ruling that the marriage between teenage heir Lai (賴) and a man surnamed Hsia (夏) was legally invalid, preventing Hsia from inheriting Lai’s NT$500 million (US$16.37 million) estate. The court confirmed that Hsia chose not to appeal the civil judgement after the court handed down its ruling in June, making the decision final. In the June ruling, the court said that Lai, 18, and Hsia, 26, showed “no mutual admiration before the marriage” and that their interactions were “distant and unfamiliar.” The judge concluded that the couple lacked the “true intention of
INDUSTRY: Beijing’s latest export measures go beyond targeting the US and would likely affect any country that uses Chinese rare earths or related tech, an academic said Taiwanese industries could face significant disruption from China’s newly tightened export controls on rare earth elements, as much of Taiwan’s supply indirectly depends on Chinese materials processed in Japan, a local expert said yesterday. Kristy Hsu (徐遵慈), director of the Taiwan ASEAN Studies Center at the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research, said that China’s latest export measures go far beyond targeting the US and would likely affect any country that uses Chinese rare earths or related technologies. With Japan and Southeast Asian countries among those expected to be hit, Taiwan could feel the impact through its reliance on Japanese-made semi-finished products and
RSS