Three of Taiwan’s field army commands this month would each hold anti-landing drills on a beach in their jurisdiction, including two public beaches, the Fisheries Agency said in three notifications on May 23 and Monday last week.
The first drill would be held on Wednesday by the army’s Tainan-based Eighth Army Corps on a public beach in the Sishu Coastal Recreation Area, the agency said.
The Sixth Army Corps on June 18 would be training on Jhongfu Beach (中福海灘) in New Taipei City, while the 10th Army Corps would conduct a live-fire drill on June 26 at Taichung’s Caocuosi Beach (草厝溪海灘), the agency said.
Photo: Carlos Garcia Rawlins, Reuters
The military has been strengthening its defense protocols with weapons practices, wargames and live-fire drills conducted on the nation’s “red beaches.”
Beaches in Taiwan are categorized into three color codes: Red beaches could see large-scale landing operations and are the most vulnerable to a Chinese People’s Liberation Army invasion; yellow zones are beaches that could see unconventional landing operations; and blue beaches are locations that would be difficult to invade.
Anti-landing drills that involve shooting practices on beaches aim to familiarize soldiers with the environment of a potential battlefield, the military said.
Firing rounds on beaches differs from target practice in controlled environments, as environmental factors such as wind and sand can affect visibility and the functionality of weapons, the military said.
The military also increased the number of anti-landing drills on red beaches, such as in Tainan’s Sishu Coastal Recreation Area.
Because these areas are accessible to the public, the army had only conducted basic drills such as physical training and hardware construction before the first live-fire exercise in Taoyuan’s Guanyin Coastal Recreation Area, which was held at the end of last year.
The three red beaches selected for the anti-landing drills this month were also evaluated by analyst Ian M. Easton in his book The Chinese Invasion Threat: Taiwan’s Defense and American Strategy in Asia for their tactical relevance.
Sishu (喜樹) could be a target due to its closeness to important locations such as Taoyuan International Airport and Tainan Air Base, and infrastructure such as the Coastal Highway, Easton said.
Jhongfu Beach was mentioned for its proximity to Taoyuan International Airport and Linkou Power Plant, as well as Caocuosi Beach, as it is near Taichung International Airport, which is also an air base.
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if the next president of that country decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said today. “We would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said during a legislative hearing. At the same time, Taiwan is paying close attention to the Central American region as a whole, in the wake of a visit there earlier this year by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Lin said. Rubio visited Panama, El Salvador, Costa Rica and Guatemala, during which he
RSS