China’s decision to honor three key military units that train for a hypothetical attack on Taiwan showed that its military is focused on potential battlefields in the Taiwan Strait, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in a report.
Last month, nine advanced military training units were listed on an honor roll published by the Chinese Military Commission, with two of the units from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theater Command and one from its Southern Theater Command.
The Eastern Theater Command would be the main attack force in a cross-strait war, the council said, adding that its two units were a submarine detachment and a special air support regiment.
Photo: Reuters
The unit from the Southern Theater Command, which was created to assist the main force, is part of an amphibious brigade, the council said.
“These three military units would constitute three key forces in a war against Taiwan: undersea warfare, special air support and amphibious warfare,” the MAC said. “This shows the tendency of the PLA to operate on battlefields in the Taiwan Strait.”
“More military units that are of the main attack force are expected to appear on the commission’s honor roll,” it said.
On Nov. 15 last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) told US President Joe Biden during a meeting in San Francisco that there was no plan to attack Taiwan in 2027 or 2035, but added that the problem must be solved eventually, the council said.
In his New Year’s address on Jan. 1, Xi called “the reunification of the motherland” a historical necessity, it added.
Xi’s call to resolve “the Taiwan issue at a certain moment” should be understood as a time when the balance of power between the US and China favors Beijing, rather than a specific timeline, it said.
Retired US Navy Admiral James Stavridis, who served as NATO Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe commander from 2009 to 2013, said in an interview last year that China “will not be ready to take on the US in a very mature way for about 10 years.”
China’s capability and aggressiveness in building a massive fleet would be “inconsequential” given the strength of US military alliances, Stavridis said.
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
The long-awaited Taichung aquarium is expected to open next year after more than a decade of development. The building in Cingshui District (清水) is to feature a large ocean aquarium on the first floor, coral display area on the second floor, a jellyfish tank and Dajia River (大甲溪) basin display on the third, a river estuary display and restaurant on the fourth, and a cafe and garden on the fifth. As it is near Wuci Fishing Port (梧棲漁港), many are expecting the opening of the aquarium to bring more tourism to the harbor. Speaking at the city council on Monday, Taichung City Councilor
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese