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Taiwan starts annual dry run, aiming to closely simulate actual fight

Taiwan performed antilanding drills on a tactical river on Monday at the start of the annual Han Kuang dry run, which this year aim to be as close as possible to actual combat without any script and replicating how to ward off a Chinese attack.

China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its area, has been staging routine exercises around the island for four years to press Taipei to accept Beijing's claim of sovereignty, in spite of Taiwan's strong objections.

Taiwan's drills this year have cancelled aspects that were primarily for show, like scripted firepower displays, while there will be intensified nighttime exercises and practicing how to run with severed command lines.

Starting the first day of exercises in Tamsui at the mouth of a significant river resulting in Taipei, soldiers practiced laying mines and webs to stymie the landing of opponent forces, part of a series of drills designed to prevent the capital being seized.

We are attempting our best to slow them down as much as possible, military office Chang Chih-pin informed press reporters, describing a circumstance where the opponent was attempting to make landfall by sending rubber boats into the Tamsui River.

The slower they move, the better for us, he included.

Earlier on Monday in close-by Taoyuan, outside of Taipei and home to Taiwan's main international airport, reservists gathered to get their orders as they would during a war, and civilian vans were pushed into service to bring products.

On Thursday, Taoyuan airport will close for an hour in the morning for the drills, though a hurricane is anticipated to be impacting the island that day meaning that the workout might be postponed.

Taiwan's defence ministry also released video of flying force fighter jets at the Hualien air base on the island's east coast, which has actually hangars eliminated of the side of a mountain to protect aircraft from aerial attack.

Live fire drills will just happen on Taiwan's far-flung islands, including Kinmen and Matsu which sit nestled next to the Chinese coast and were the scene of on-off clashes during the height of the Cold War.

The five-day dry run will be occurring in combination with the Wan' an civil defence drills, where the streets of significant cities are left for half an hour throughout a simulated Chinese missile attack, and test caution alarms will sound on mobile phones.

The drill circumstances today consist of setting up contingency command lines after existing hubs are ruined and distributing Chinese forces trying to land on Taiwan's western shoreline dealing with China, a defence authorities involved in the preparation stated.

China held 2 days of its own dry run around the island shortly after President Lai Ching-te took office in May, stating it was punishment for his inauguration speech, which Beijing denounced as having lots of separatist content.

However China has likewise been utilizing grey zone warfare versus Taiwan, wielding irregular techniques to exhaust an opponent by keeping them constantly on alert without resorting to open combat. This consists of almost day-to-day flying force missions into the skies near Taiwan

China has actually never ever renounced making use of force to bring Taiwan. under its control. Lai, who says only the Taiwanese individuals can decide their future, has actually consistently used talks however been rebuffed.

(source: Reuters)