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 manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS