A new study by the Project 2049 Institute — a Washington-based security and public policy think tank — quotes unnamed sources as saying that Taiwan’s spying operations against China “are the most effective in the world.”
Research fellow Ian Easton says in a footnote to the study that he learned this from “multiple interviews” in the Washington area and in Tokyo over the past year.
Providing advanced warning of Chinese preparations for an attack or providing warning that an attack might be under way are the highest priority for Taiwanese intelligence services, he says.
“Indications and warning (I&W) is essential during peacetime to prevent the People’s Republic of China (PRC) from obtaining the advantage of surprise,” Easton said in the study titled Able Archers — Taiwan Defense Strategy in the Age of Precision Strike.
“Taiwan’s timely and reliable I&W greatly contributes to good decisionmaking, allowing leaders to take appropriate steps ranging from increasing the readiness levels of forces to activating contingency plans,” Easton wrote.
Information about Chinese activities obtained from Taiwan’s early-warning radar systems is combined with data collected by other sources as a basis for action by Taiwanese and US decisionmakers, the study found.
In a rare glimpse into Taiwan’s intelligence gathering system, the study found that the nation operates a significant signals intelligence (SIGINT) system capable of gathering data on the “intentions, activities and capabilities” of China’s military and security forces.
“Taiwan exploits a large number of listening posts, its close proximity to China and its world-class information and communications technology expertise for collecting SIGINT,” it added.
The study says that the nation might have been the first in the world to establish a cyberwarfare command.
“Taiwan’s ability to penetrate PLA [People’s Liberation Army] systems benefits from its well-regarded computer hacking and computer security communities — as well as its commanding position on the supply chains that support the PRC’s electronics and computer technology industries,” the study says.
According to Easton, “anecdotal evidence” suggests that Taiwan’s computer hardware and software engineering talent continues to outpace competition in China.
He wrote that the nation’s government has a long history of leveraging its close cultural, linguistic and economic ties to China for collecting traditional human intelligence.
“Western media reports generally focus on the Chinese intelligence threat to Taiwan, while overlooking Taipei’s impressive track record of penetrating high-level targets in Beijing,” Easton wrote.
Counterintelligence experts and retired government officials have said that, despite the massive collection efforts aimed at it, Taiwan has been more successful at protecting classified information than South Korea and Japan.
Easton wrote that examples of intelligence successes include Taiwan’s collection of detailed information on China’s intercontinental ballistic missiles, the PLA’s Second Artillery Corps nuclear weapons division and Beijing’s construction of drones and airbases.
In addition, Easton wrote that Taiwan’s special operations forces might be sent to the US for SEAL, Delta Force, Green Beret, Ranger and Airborne training.
“During a full-scale conflict, Taiwan’s military would likely use its special operations forces to strike a limited number of high-value targets in China that it deems are essential to PLA operations,” he wrote.
These targets could include airfields, command posts, missile launchers and port facilities.
“It is thought that Taiwan special operations forces units have already prepared the battlefield through the use of covert reconnaissance operations and the exploitation of agents that Taiwan may have in Fujian Province and elsewhere inside the PRC,” the study says.
The study concludes that the constant pressure that Beijing puts on the White House, the US Department of State and the Pentagon “inevitably threatens to make any US decision regarding Taiwan difficult and politicized.”
In an effort to improve Taiwan’s security, the study calls on the administration of US President Barack Obama to relax its limits on visits to Taiwan by senior US military officers.
The study urges the White House to promote bilateral defense industry cooperation with Taiwan, leading to joint technology programs similar to those in place with Japan.
And it wants to see the Obama administration fully incorporate Taiwan into its rebalance to Asia.
“As in any relationship, trust is critical, especially when life and death and the fate of nations are at stake,” Easton wrote.
AIR SUPPORT: The Ministry of National Defense thanked the US for the delivery, adding that it was an indicator of the White House’s commitment to the Taiwan Relations Act Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) and Representative to the US Alexander Yui on Friday attended a delivery ceremony for the first of Taiwan’s long-awaited 66 F-16C/D Block 70 jets at a Lockheed Martin Corp factory in Greenville, South Carolina. “We are so proud to be the global home of the F-16 and to support Taiwan’s air defense capabilities,” US Representative William Timmons wrote on X, alongside a photograph of Taiwanese and US officials at the event. The F-16C/D Block 70 jets Taiwan ordered have the same capabilities as aircraft that had been upgraded to F-16Vs. The batch of Lockheed Martin
GRIDLOCK: The National Fire Agency’s Special Search and Rescue team is on standby to travel to the countries to help out with the rescue effort A powerful earthquake rocked Myanmar and neighboring Thailand yesterday, killing at least three people in Bangkok and burying dozens when a high-rise building under construction collapsed. Footage shared on social media from Myanmar’s second-largest city showed widespread destruction, raising fears that many were trapped under the rubble or killed. The magnitude 7.7 earthquake, with an epicenter near Mandalay in Myanmar, struck at midday and was followed by a strong magnitude 6.4 aftershock. The extent of death, injury and destruction — especially in Myanmar, which is embroiled in a civil war and where information is tightly controlled at the best of times —
Taiwan was ranked the fourth-safest country in the world with a score of 82.9, trailing only Andorra, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar in Numbeo’s Safety Index by Country report. Taiwan’s score improved by 0.1 points compared with last year’s mid-year report, which had Taiwan fourth with a score of 82.8. However, both scores were lower than in last year’s first review, when Taiwan scored 83.3, and are a long way from when Taiwan was named the second-safest country in the world in 2021, scoring 84.8. Taiwan ranked higher than Singapore in ninth with a score of 77.4 and Japan in 10th with
China's military today said it began joint army, navy and rocket force exercises around Taiwan to "serve as a stern warning and powerful deterrent against Taiwanese independence," calling President William Lai (賴清德) a "parasite." The exercises come after Lai called Beijing a "foreign hostile force" last month. More than 10 Chinese military ships approached close to Taiwan's 24 nautical mile (44.4km) contiguous zone this morning and Taiwan sent its own warships to respond, two senior Taiwanese officials said. Taiwan has not yet detected any live fire by the Chinese military so far, one of the officials said. The drills took place after US Secretary
RSS