Yesterday, the Taiwanese Armed Forces commenced the annual “Han Kuang” war games series, which are premised on repelling an attack and invasion by China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on the island. These drills, aiming to simulate a scenario as close to this possibility as possible, began with the simulation of a landing on a critical river whose mouth leads to Taipei. Here, forces placed mines and nets to prevent the capture of the capital.
The Taiwanese Ministry of Defense explained that the drills aim to test the country’s ability to protect critical infrastructure located in Taipei and refine the resilience of these infrastructures against various types of attacks. In this regard, some of the activities will include establishing contingency command lines, simulating the destruction of existing centers, and deploying Chinese forces attempting to land on Taiwan’s western coast. It is noteworthy that there was no prior training or preparation for what will take place in the coming days. High-ranking officials have expressed that they seek to maintain the element of surprise, increasing the alertness of the forces to any unforeseen events.
Drills will also take place on Taiwan’s peripheral islands, including Kinmen and Matsu, located near the Chinese coast. Additionally, over the next five days, civil defense drills will be conducted in the streets of major cities, considering a context of Chinese missile attacks.
Taiwan has taken into account past Chinese exercises around the island. The most recent, which occurred in May, involved a large number of air and naval assets, simulating preparations for future attacks on Taipei and its surroundings. Thus, it is not surprising that the island conducts simulations of attacks by China and Taiwan’s corresponding responses throughout the year.
In the past, these annual exercises included live-fire drills on the beach to repel Chinese amphibious operations. Moreover, these activities will be monitored and observed by the president, other high-ranking politicians, and foreign diplomats, with a live broadcast.
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