The Ministry of National Defense yesterday said it welcomes the US’ ongoing efforts to help the country train its troops, after sources on Monday said that nearly 200 US military instructors are working in Taiwan.
The US advisers have been primarily assigned to boot camps and reserve brigades to observe Taiwan’s protocols and provide practical consultations on training methods, the sources within the armed forces said.
The input from US military advisers would help Taiwan formulate better training methods for when mandatory military service is next year extended from four months to one year, the sources said.
Photo: Ritchie B. Tongo, EPA-EFE
The ministry appreciates the efforts of “an allied country in boosting the nation’s armed forces by means of military training,” ministry spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) said.
He added that he would not give details on the collaboration, citing a mutual agreement.
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT), the de facto US embassy, said that it does not comment on specific operations the US has in Taiwan, but reiterated Washington’s support for Taipei’s defense.
“We don’t have a comment on specific operations, engagements or training, but I would highlight that our support for and defense relationship with Taiwan remain aligned against the current threat posed by the People’s Republic of China,” an AIT spokesperson said in an e-mail.
“Our commitment to Taiwan is rock-solid and contributes to the maintenance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and within the region,” the spokesperson added.
Local media began reporting sightings of US advisers as early as March 27 at a base in Kaohsiung’s Gangshan District (岡山).
Chieh Chung (揭仲), an associate research fellow at the National Policy Foundation in Taipei, said that if the advisers provide practical improvements, Taiwan’s military could make great strides.
The US military is familiar with strategic shooting and battlefield medical training, both of which could benefit conscripts, Chieh said.
Institute of National Defense and Security Research fellow Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲) said that the deployment of advisers, mainly from the US Army, was part of Washington’s efforts to fulfill the ambitions of the US National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023, which seeks to deepen military exchanges with Taiwan and strengthen Taiwan’s defense capabilities.
The brilliant blue waters, thick foliage and bucolic atmosphere on this seemingly idyllic archipelago deep in the Pacific Ocean belie the key role it now plays in a titanic geopolitical struggle. Palau is again on the front line as China, and the US and its allies prepare their forces in an intensifying contest for control over the Asia-Pacific region. The democratic nation of just 17,000 people hosts US-controlled airstrips and soon-to-be-completed radar installations that the US military describes as “critical” to monitoring vast swathes of water and airspace. It is also a key piece of the second island chain, a string of
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake that struck about 33km off the coast of Hualien City was the "main shock" in a series of quakes in the area, with aftershocks expected over the next three days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Prior to the magnitude 5.9 quake shaking most of Taiwan at 6:53pm yesterday, six other earthquakes stronger than a magnitude of 4, starting with a magnitude 5.5 quake at 6:09pm, occurred in the area. CWA Seismological Center Director Wu Chien-fu (吳健富) confirmed that the quakes were all part of the same series and that the magnitude 5.5 temblor was
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
The Central Weather Administration has issued a heat alert for southeastern Taiwan, warning of temperatures as high as 36°C today, while alerting some coastal areas of strong winds later in the day. Kaohsiung’s Neimen District (內門) and Pingtung County’s Neipu Township (內埔) are under an orange heat alert, which warns of temperatures as high as 36°C for three consecutive days, the CWA said, citing southwest winds. The heat would also extend to Tainan’s Nansi (楠西) and Yujing (玉井) districts, as well as Pingtung’s Gaoshu (高樹), Yanpu (鹽埔) and Majia (瑪家) townships, it said, forecasting highs of up to 36°C in those areas
RSS