Military at peacetime readiness
NORMAL STATUS: The military adjusts the number of troops on alert depending on the security situation around Taiwan, the deputy minister of national defense said
Staff writer, with CNA
The nation’s armed forces remain at “normal combat readiness status,” despite tensions across the Taiwan Strait and a foreign magazine calling Taiwan “the most dangerous place on Earth,” Deputy Minister of National Defense Chang Che-ping (張哲平) said yesterday.
The military continuously adjusts the number of troops on alert depending on developments in the security situation around Taiwan, Chang told a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee.
Last month, the Ministry of National Defense announced plans to form a new reserve mobilization agency, integrating two existing military agencies the All-out Defense Mobilization Office and the Armed Forces Reserve Command into a new “defense reserve mobilization agency” by January next year.
During a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee on April 19, Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) told legislators that the proposed reforms to the military reserve system would include amending the Civilian Defense Act (民防法) to allow the military to mobilize post-disaster relief volunteer workers at Buddhist and Taoist
‘Tabletop’ Han Kuang games begin
Staff writer, with CNA
The “tabletop” portion of this year’s Han Kuang military exercises began on Friday to test Taiwan’s defense strategies and tactics against a simulated attack by China.
The “tabletop drills” officially started at noon, with Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) and Chief of the General Staff Admiral Huang Shu-kuang (黃曙光) overseeing the process at a command center, the Ministry of National Defense said.
The Han Kuang exercises are Taiwan’s largest annual war games and involve all branches of the armed forces. They are held annually in two stages: the tabletop drills and live-fire drills.
Military extends war games to have more analysis time
Staff writer, with CNA
The military has extended the computer-assisted portion of this year’s annual war games to allow for more thorough analysis of its results, Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) said yesterday.
Chiu made the remarks in response to questions from reporters about the extension of the computer portion of the Han Kuang exercises from five to eight days this year.
The exercises from Friday to Friday next week would be the longest since the annual games were first held in 1984.
Chiu said that the military has previously held five-day and seven-day versions of the Han Kuang exercises.
No defense alert during US talks: MND
‘MINIMAL RISK’: Chinese military activity near the Nanpeng Islands in the South China Sea was not designated ‘exercises,’ a national defense official said
By Jake Chung / Staff writer, with CNA
No air defense missile systems had been activated before a US delegation arrived in Taipei on Wednesday, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said yesterday.
The delegation is comprised of former US senator Chris Dodd, former US deputy secretaries of state Richard Armitage and James Steinberg, and US Department of State Taiwan Coordination Office Director Dan Biers.
On the day of the delegation’s arrival, China’s Maritime Safety Administration announced a six-day live-fire military exercise, conducted daily from 8am to 6pm, near the Nanpeng Islands (南澎列島) in the South China Sea.