The military remains on alert following comments made online that China was simulating a military strategy aimed at removing Taiwan’s leadership, Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) said yesterday.
Military enthusiast Joseph Wen (溫約瑟) yesterday wrote online that a bombing range in Alxa Left Banner in Inner Mongolia, an autonomous region in northern China, has a similar layout to Taipei’s Boai Special District (博愛特區).
There is a high concentration of ministries and other government buildings in Boai Special District. The Presidential Office Building is in the center of the district.
Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng speaks at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday.
Any country with the ambition and wherewithal to do so would build facilities that simulate its target, Chiu said.
Taiwan would also do so if it had the space for such facilities, he added.
The alleged site is a warning, and the military would be on guard for such strategies, Chiu said.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has previously made mockups of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei, he said.
Instead of worrying about the possibility of such attacks and strategies, the military’s task is to plan for the worst, Chiu said.
The military will continue to train as before and react accordingly, Chiu said.
Asked about tensions in the South China Sea, Chiu said that he is not a man of empty words and would be ready, regardless of any developments in the region.
Chiu said he was unaware of the Ministry of Digital Affairs’ announcement that it was preparing a wartime network.
However, he would speak with the Ministry of Digital Affairs to determine whether such a network would be included in this year’s Han Kuang exercises, Chiu said.
Asked about former National Security Council secretary-general Ting Yu-chou’s (丁渝洲) suggestion that the military should set war termination criteria, Chiu said he would not comment on others people’s opinions.
“The military’s termination criteria are that we will go as far as the other side is willing to,” he said, adding that he does not personally consider that a criterion for ending a war.
Whether the government should set such criteria is above his pay grade, he added.
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator Chang Chi-kai (張啟楷) asked Chiu whether he would change his answer if President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) or president-elect William Lai (賴清德) posed the same question.
Chiu said he knew his role and place and would state his answer accordingly, but no one has asked him such a question yet.
It is best to refrain from starting a war and fight cautiously, Chiu said, adding that there are no winners in wars.
Additional reporting by CNA
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS