Two army brigades launched a week-long live-fire exercise in central Taiwan on Saturday after a six-year hiatus to test the combat readiness of ground troops amid the rising military threat from China.
The seven-day drill carried out by the Taoyuan-based 269th Mechanized Infantry Brigade and the Kaohsiung-based Republic of China (ROC) Marine Corps’ 99th brigade simulates combat scenarios in Chiayi County, with the central Taiwan-based 10th Army Corps Command presiding over the exercise.
According to the scenario, the 269th Mechanized Infantry Brigade is designated the defending “blue team” while the 99th brigade acts as the invading “red team.”
Photo courtesy of Military News Agency
The ongoing drill titled “Chang Ching” (長青), or “evergreen,” is to test the command efficiency of both brigades.
This is the first time since 2017 a Chang Ching drill has been held independently. In the past five years, the army incorporated the Chang Ching drill into other annual military exercises.
Institute for National Defense and Security Research fellow Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲) said the army used to hold annual Chang Ching exercise in central Taiwan, Chang Tai (長泰) in northern Taiwan, and Chang Shang (長勝) in southern Taiwan to test troops’ joint-exercise capabilities to combat a Chinese invasion.
The brigade-level exercise tests whether each unit is sufficiently trained on intelligence, command, interception, communication and logistic support in the event of a cross-Taiwan Strait war, Su said.
In the ongoing Chang Ching drill, the 269th Mechanized Infantry Brigade is equipped with variants of the domestic Clouded Leopard armored vehicle, as well as the latest drones, which are expected to undergo rigorous tests during the week-long exercise, Su said.
US military consultants are likely to preside over the exercises with Taiwanese military personnel, he added.
An undersea cable to Penghu County has been severed, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said today, with a Chinese-funded ship suspected of being responsible. It comes just a month after a Chinese ship was suspected of severing an undersea cable north of Keelung Harbor. The National Communications and Cyber Security Center received a report at 3:03am today from Chunghwa Telecom that the No. 3 cable from Taiwan to Penghu was severed 14.7km off the coast of Tainan, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) upon receiving a report from Chunghwa Telecom began to monitor the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai (宏泰)
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
RISING TOURISM: A survey showed that tourist visits increased by 35 percent last year, while newly created attractions contributed almost half of the growth Changhua County’s Lukang Old Street (鹿港老街) and its surrounding historical area clinched first place among Taiwan’s most successful tourist attractions last year, while no location in eastern Taiwan achieved a spot in the top 20 list, the Tourism Administration said. The listing was created by the Tourism Administration’s Forward-looking Tourism Policy Research office. Last year, the Lukang Old Street and its surrounding area had 17.3 million visitors, more than the 16 million visitors for the Wenhua Road Night Market (文化路夜市) in Chiayi City and 14.5 million visitors at Tainan’s Anping (安平) historical area, it said. The Taipei 101 skyscraper and its environs —
Actor Lee Wei (李威) was released on bail on Monday after being named as a suspect in the death of a woman whose body was found in the meeting place of a Buddhist group in Taipei’s Daan District (大安) last year, prosecutors said. Lee, 44, was released on NT$300,000 (US$9,148) bail, while his wife, surnamed Chien (簡), was released on NT$150,000 bail after both were summoned to give statements regarding the woman’s death. The home of Lee, who has retreated from the entertainment business in the past few years, was also searched by prosecutors and police earlier on Monday. Lee was questioned three
RSS