The Ministry of National Defense has ordered the Marine Corps to increase troops stationed in bases in the Greater Taipei area to respond to potential strikes from China against the capital, a military source revealed.
The Marine Amphibious Reconnaissance and Patrol Unit is to join the troops in defending the Tamsui River (淡水河) and Port of Taipei.
In 2017, the 66th Marine Brigade was stationed at the Political Warfare Academy in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), the first combat unit to be stationed in Taipei other than the military police, the source, who declined to provide his name, said.
Photo: Liu Jen-wei, Taipei Times
Assessments of Taipei’s security made the military decide to send further reinforcements, leading to this month’s deployment of Marine soldiers on the Tamsui River, the source said.
The reconnaissance unit will work with Guandu Area Command and Coast Guard Administration to jointly carry out river defense missions, the source added.
The 66th Marine Brigade must also defend key infrastructure like Taipei Port, the source said, adding that specific arrangements are in place for task forces within the unit.
Although the security of Taipei has been the responsibility of the military police, the security situation required strengthening the area’s defenses and may one day lead to a combined military police–marine corps defense arrangement for Taipei.
The structure and organization of Taiwan’s naval forces will be adjusted next year, military sources have said.
These changes include integrating new anti-ship missiles, fast attack boats and reconnaissance units into the newly established Coastal Defense Operations Command.
Furthermore, the Marine Corps’ structure will be adjusted away from heavy equipment in favor of focusing on rapid deployment, with plans to become clearer later this year.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Travel agencies in Taiwan are working to secure alternative flights for travelers bound for New Zealand for the Lunar New Year holiday, as Air New Zealand workers are set to strike next week. The airline said that it has confirmed that the planned industrial action by its international wide-body cabin crew would go ahead on Thursday and Friday next week. While the Auckland-based carrier pledged to take reasonable measures to mitigate the impact of the workers’ strike, an Air New Zealand flight arriving at Taipei from Auckland on Thursday and another flight departing from Taipei for Auckland on Saturday would have to
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS