Taiwan would likely be targeted by Chinese precision missile strikes in the event of a war and should disperse its military assets to prevent their destruction, Institute for National Policy Research senior consultant Chen Wen-jia (陳文甲) said yesterday.
Military units could be “hidden” among the public during peacetime and deployed to the field in the event of a conflict, Chen said.
The military could use mountainous areas, bridges, culverts, factories and underground facilities to hide its assets.
Photo: Yu Tai-lang, Taipei Times
The navy can disperse its assets along the east coast and store ammunition on civilian ships, he added.
The air force could hide its jets inside hangars carved into the mountains in eastern Taiwan, or fly them to the Philippines to prevent their loss, Chen said.
Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) during a report to the Legislative Yuan on May 25 said that if war were to break out with China, there would be no front or rear, and all units would have to preserve their combat capabilities.
A joint article by Institute of National Defense and Security Research fellow Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲) and the Ministry of National Defense’s Department of Integrated Assessment Performance Appraisal Division Director Chang Ying-chung (張應中), published on the institute’s Bi-Weekly Defense Report on May 26, also addressed the issue.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is investing heavily to boost its navy and air force, and is also stepping up the development of precision-strike capabilities, including ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and uncrewed platforms, the article said.
It said that China’s Dong-Feng 15C ballistic missile is capable of striking reinforced underground targets such as command centers, and fuel and munitions reserves.
Ukraine’s claim of successfully intercepting Russia’s Kh-47M2 Kinzhal with the Patriot missile system shows that missile-defense systems could provide adequate defense against hypersonic missiles, it said.
However, the systems are expensive and could leave critical military infrastructure exposed in the event of a saturation attack, it added.
The article suggested that missile defense systems should go hand-in-hand with passive defense systems, such as reinforced concrete, to mitigate threats posed by penetrating weapons.
The article suggested building new reinforced structures in tunnels, at least 100m underground in mountainous areas.
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