A system to discern friend from foe, and instant access to accurate information are among the highlights of the latest version of the All-Out Defense Response Handbook, which the Ministry of National Defense released yesterday.
The ministry presented the handbook at a news conference in Taipei after it spent more than a year revising a version it published in April last year.
The handbook has been expanded from 28 to 48 pages, the ministry said.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
All-Out Defense Mobilization Agency Director Shen Wei-chih (沈威志) said that the handbook has two main sections: “Peacetime Preparedness” and “Wartime Response.”
“Peacetime Preparedness” covers items that should be prepared for an emergency evacuation, distinguishing air-raid alerts, knowledge of important facilities and accessing accurate information.
“Wartime Response” covers possible combat situations, including telling friend from foe; conducting an emergency evacuation; handling of water, power or food shortages and other disruptions of daily necessities; addressing communications disruptions; responding to medical emergencies; managing battlefield crises caused by fire, explosives, chemical weapons or missiles; and contacting emergency hotlines.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
The handbook shows uniforms and insignia worn by service personnel in Taiwan’s army, navy, air force and Marine Corps, as well as those worn by members of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
“After Russia invaded Ukraine, many have suggested that the handbook should prepare the public for severe wartime situations and offer them adequate information to respond to changes,” Shen said. “As such, we consulted similar books published in other countries, and suggestions proposed by lawmakers and experts to compile the handbook.”
The handbook has information about air-raid shelters, hospitals with emergency rooms and rationing of daily necessities, and allows people to check locations on an app, Shen said.
During wartime, it is important that people do not believe rumors about defeat or surrender by the government, he said.
Nearly 94 percent of the nation’s air defense shelters have been inspected since Aug. 8 last year, the National Police Agency’s Civil Defense and Command Control Center deputy director Lin Kuo-hua (林國華) told the news conference.
Inspections of the remaining shelters should be completed during the first half of next month, Lin said.
Of the 89,405 air defense shelters across Taiwan, 83,691 have been inspected, he said.
“We are in the process of upgrading signs for air defense shelters across the country,” he said.
“Some local governments have been asked to laminate signs to prevent water damage,” he said. “Two regions have printed signs on acrylic panels. Should funding allow, cities and counties are encouraged to use LED panels for the signs.”
As of Wednesday last week, 83.4 percent of the signs had been upgraded, he added.
SILICON VALLEY HUB: The office would showcase Taiwan’s strengths in semiconductors and artificial intelligence, and help Taiwanese start-ups connect with global opportunities Taiwan has established an office in Palo Alto, one of the principal cities of Silicon Valley in California, aimed at helping Taiwanese technology start-ups gain global visibility, the National Development Council said yesterday. The “Startup Island Taiwan Silicon Valley hub” at No. 299 California Avenue is focused on “supporting start-ups and innovators by providing professional consulting, co-working spaces, and community platforms,” the council said in a post on its Web site. The office is the second overseas start-up hub established by the council, after a similar site was set up in Tokyo in September last year. Representatives from Taiwanese start-ups, local businesses and
EXPRESSING GRATITUDE: Without its Taiwanese partners which are ‘working around the clock,’ Nvidia could not meet AI demand, CEO Jensen Huang said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and US-based artificial intelligence (AI) chip designer Nvidia Corp have partnered with each other on silicon photonics development, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) said. Speaking with reporters after he met with TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) in Taipei on Friday, Huang said his company was working with the world’s largest contract chipmaker on silicon photonics, but admitted it was unlikely for the cooperation to yield results any time soon, and both sides would need several years to achieve concrete outcomes. To have a stake in the silicon photonics supply chain, TSMC and
‘DETERRENT’: US national security adviser-designate Mike Waltz said that he wants to speed up deliveries of weapons purchased by Taiwan to deter threats from China US president-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for US secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, affirmed his commitment to peace in the Taiwan Strait during his confirmation hearing in Washington on Tuesday. Hegseth called China “the most comprehensive and serious challenge to US national security” and said that he would aim to limit Beijing’s expansion in the Indo-Pacific region, Voice of America reported. He would also adhere to long-standing policies to prevent miscalculations, Hegseth added. The US Senate Armed Services Committee hearing was the first for a nominee of Trump’s incoming Cabinet, and questions mostly focused on whether he was fit for the
SHARED VALUES: The US, Taiwan and other allies hope to maintain the cross-strait ‘status quo’ to foster regional prosperity and growth, the former US vice president said Former US vice president Mike Pence yesterday vowed to continue to support US-Taiwan relations, and to defend the security and interests of both countries and the free world. At a meeting with President William Lai (賴清德) at the Presidential Office in Taipei, Pence said that the US and Taiwan enjoy strong and continued friendship based on the shared values of freedom, the rule of law and respect for human rights. Such foundations exceed limitations imposed by geography and culture, said Pence, who is visiting Taiwan for the first time. The US and Taiwan have shared interests, and Americans are increasingly concerned about China’s
RSS