An observation group comprised of retired US military generals attended the five-day tabletop war games phase of the annual Han Kuang military exercises this week, a source said yesterday.
They came as observers to provide suggestions on the tabletop war games, which simulated the armed forces’ defensive response to different attack scenarios, the source said, without giving details.
As in previous years, this year’s Han Kuang exercises are being held in two stages.
Photo: Taipei Times file
The tabletop war games phase was held from Monday to Friday, and the live-fire exercise is scheduled for July 24 to 28.
Institute for National Defense and Security Research fellow Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲) said that although the Ministry of National Defense has never confirmed the presence of observation groups, retired US military personnel have watched war games in Taiwan for many years.
With the US becoming more open about arms sales and its friendly policies toward Taiwan, it was not a surprise that the group’s members this year consisted of many high-ranking retired officers, Su said.
At the end of last month, a defense official said that the computerized war games would be conducted using the US-built Joint Theater Level Simulation platform to simulate joint, combined and coalition civil-military operations.
The simulation platform is highly informative because it incorporates data from the actual combat experiences of the US and NATO, Su said.
The parameters obtained from the recently concluded tabletop war games would be put into practice in the live-fire Han Kuang drills in July, he said, adding that this would refine future exercises.
The Han Kuang exercises, Taiwan’s major war games, have been held annually since 1984, in the form of live-fire drills and computerized war games, to test the nation’s combat readiness in the face of a possible Chinese invasion.
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
COMMITMENTS: The company had a relatively low renewable ratio at 56 percent and did not have any goal to achieve 100 percent renewable energy, the report said Pegatron Corp ranked the lowest among five major final assembly suppliers in progressing toward Apple Inc’s commitment to be 100 percent carbon neutral by 2030, a Greenpeace East Asia report said yesterday. While Apple has set the goal of using 100 percent renewable energy across its entire business, supply chain and product lifecycle by 2030, carbon emissions from electronics manufacturing are rising globally due to increased energy consumption, it said. Given that carbon emissions from its supply chain accounted for more than half of its total emissions last year, Greenpeace East Asia evaluated the green transition performance of Apple’s five largest final
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
RSS