The military is to conduct drills next week to prevent China sabotaging the nation’s submarine cables, a defense official said yesterday.
The anonymous source with knowledge of the matter made the comment after a Chinese cargo ship flying the flag of another nation was last month detained on suspicion of severing a cable between Taiwan proper and Penghu County.
Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) on Monday last week told reporters that Beijing might use military exercises to disguise a military buildup before an invasion attempt.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
The armed forces would hold “immediate combat readiness exercises” in response to ceaseless “gray zone” harassment and to counter any threat posed by Chinese vessels, he said.
The military is to scale its reaction to match the perceived threat level of China’s activities, he said.
The armed forces are preparing to launch their first-ever immediate combat readiness exercise starting on Monday next week, the anonymous source said.
The armed forces would be put on high alert through the five-day drills, and the comprehensive exercise was planned as a warm-up for this year’s annual Han Kuang exercises, they said.
All parts of the military — including units not currently deployed in a defensive capacity — would take part in the exercise, they said.
This year’s Han Kuang exercises are to be the longest in the nation’s history.
The computer simulations would last 14 days, while the field exercise would take 10 consecutive days, it said.
“Gray zone” warfare and in-depth defense in a conflict would be featured in the scenarios, it said.
Separately, Air Force Commander Lieutenant Cheng Jung-feng (鄭榮豐) might later this month attend a ceremony in the US for the handover of the first of the nation’s long-awaited modernized F-16 jets, a source said.
The first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 70 jets Taiwan purchased could be certified for delivery in the coming weeks at the earliest, an official with knowledge of the matter said on condition of anonymity.
Cheng is expected to attend the handover ceremony, they said.
The air force confirmed that one of its personnel would visit the US for the jet’s handover, without elaborating further.
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