President Chen Shui-bian (
In his capacity as commander-in-chief, Chen visited Air Force Operations Command in the company of Minister of National Defense Lee Jye (
Chen listened to briefings on joint operations of the Air Force and offered special bonus money to Air Force personnel as a token of his appreciation for their services during the holiday.
PHOTO: SAM YEH, AFP
The president then made a whirlwind tour of military bases around the northern military area of Linko (
Chen was welcomed by commanders and representatives of various military units stationed in Linko.
Chen expressed his admiration for the high morale shown by all the troops in the units and their contributions to national defense.
Neutrality
Lee, while addressing a ceremony at the Ministry of National Defense on Thursday in celebration of the upcoming Double Ten National Day, again reminded all military personnel, regardless of their rank, position and pay level, to stay out of politics in accordance with constitutional provisions.
The appeal came amid turmoil arising from an anti-corruption campaign aimed at pressuring Chen to resign.
Sporadic clashes between Chen's opponents and supporters have been reported at street rallies in some southern cities. The presence of a handful of those in military uniform at anti-Chen rallies has drawn criticism.
Noting that members of the armed forces are required by the Constitution to avoid personal, regional and partisan affiliation, and to be loyal to the country and protect the people, Lee said every service member should refrain from taking part in political activities.
"All men and women in uniform should dedicate themselves to serving the country and the people and transcend partisan affiliations while working to uplift military professionalism and hone their combat skills," he said.
IDF fighter
In related news, the ministry declined to comment on a media report that progress has been made on a mid-life upgrade project for the locally developed Ching-kuo indigenous defense fighters (IDF).
According to a report in the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times' sister paper) on Thursday, an upgraded version of the IDF fighter with in-flight refueling capability has undergone test flights.
Ministry spokesman Wu Chi-fang (吳季方) said the IDF mid-life upgrade program, code-named "Project Shiang Sheng," is classified.
"The project is still ongoing and the ministry is not in a position to elaborate on its implementation," Wu said.
Military sources said that the military-run Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology guided the upgrade and commissioned the state-owned Aerospace Industrial Development Corp to undertake the project.
The primary objective of the project is to improve the strike capability of the IDF, turning it into a "joint countermeasures platform" as a part of the new strategy to "conduct decisive battles outside the territory," the sources said.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
Former Taiwan People’s Party chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) may apply to visit home following the death of his father this morning, the Taipei Detention Center said. Ko’s father, Ko Cheng-fa (柯承發), passed away at 8:40am today at the Hsinchu branch of National Taiwan University Hospital. He was 94 years old. The center said Ko Wen-je was welcome to apply, but declined to say whether it had already received an application. The center also provides psychological counseling to people in detention as needed, it added, also declining to comment on Ko Wen-je’s mental state. Ko Wen-je is being held in detention as he awaits trial
RSS