Highlights of this year’s Han Kuang live-fire exercises would include test of US-style rehearsal methods aimed at improving coordination and combat readiness, sources said.
The large-scale exercises are held annually in two stages. This year’s 42nd edition of the tabletop war games was conducted from April 11 to April 24.
The live-fire portion is set to run from Wednesday to Friday this week.
Photo: EPA, Ritchie B. Tongo
As in previous years, the upcoming phase would again run for 10 days and nine nights to test the armed forces’ ability to sustain 24-hour defense operations.
Several key US-style rehearsal methods, including back briefs, would be tested during the exercises.
A back brief involves subordinates explaining to commanders how they intend to carry out assigned missions, allowing leaders to confirm understanding of the operation before it begins, a handbook on the military decisionmaking process put out by the US Center for Army Lessons Learned said.
The shift is intended to turn front-line troops into more active decisionmakers rather than passive recipients of orders, making them more effective in modern combat.
During last year’s Han Kuang exercises, the military shifted its reserve mobilization model from smaller company-level units to brigade-level deployments to better test large-scale territorial defense readiness.
Last year, more than 3,000 reservists were assigned to the Army’s 206th Infantry Brigade and conducted training missions in northern Taoyuan.
This year, two brigade-level units — one in northern Taiwan and the other in southern Taiwan — would be mobilized to test the military’s ability to complete reserve call-ups and conduct pre-combat preparations. As many as 5,000 reservists are expected to participate.
Blockage drills are to be conducted at the newly opened Danjiang Bridge, which connects New Taipei City’s Tamsui (淡水) and Bali (八里) districts at the mouth of the Tamsui River (淡水河).
Since the world’s longest single-mast asymmetric cable-stayed bridge opened to traffic in May, it has improved local transportation.
However, the bridge also provides easier and faster access to Taipei, where the Presidential Office and other key political and economic infrastructure are located.
The military would have the Army’s Taoyuan-based 53rd Engineer Group conduct blockage drills during the Han Kuang exercises to simulate slowing an enemy advance toward Taipei.
Newly received M1A2T Abrams tanks and the newly inaugurated Littoral Combat Command would also participate in the Han Kuang exercises for the first time.
The tanks have been assigned to the 584th Armored Brigade to protect key strategic locations in northern Taiwan, including beaches, critical infrastructure, and command centers.
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