The 39th Han Kuang exercises are scheduled to take place next week and, in preparation, the military has intensified its rehearsals.
Four F-16V fighter jets and one C-130 transport plane rehearsed landing at Taitung’s Fengnian Airport early Wednesday morning. They practiced landing maneuvers and ground operations before taking off immediately. The purpose of the training is to simulate landing at a civilian airport as a backup landing site.
On Wednesday afternoon, the Marine Corps simulated an enemy landing using AAV-7 amphibious assault vehicles on Bali beach in New Taipei. They deployed blockades and dispatched CM-32 “Clouded Leopard” armored vehicles to simulate a battle to wipe out the invading forces.
In an interview with Fox News released this week, former U.S. President Donald Trump, who announced his re-election campaign earlier this year, would not comment on his position on Taiwan. When asked about whether the U.S. should assist in Taiwan’s defense in the event of a conflict with China, Mr. Trump expressed his reluctance, saying that if he revealed his stance, it would put him in a weak negotiation position if he were to hold presidential office again.
Defense minister Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) said in an interview that it is crucial for Taiwan to be able to defend itself without relying too heavily on other countries. Chiu also denied that Taiwan would resell the decommissioned Eagle missile back to the U.S., and confirmed that Taiwan intends to purchase the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Defense Missile System (NASAMS). This system has been effective in countering drones during the Ukraine-Russia conflict, but Chiu said that no official timeline for the project has been agreed upon yet.