Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen observes live-fire drill from warship

Leader watched on from a destroyer off the northeast coast and said the armed forces had shown their determination to defend Taiwan
It was part of the annual Han Kuang exercise and involved joint air and naval operations simulating the response to a PLA attack

Air Defence Identification Zone

Lawrence Chungin Taipei

Published: 6:00pm, 26 Jul 2022

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Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen has boarded a warship to watch a live-fire air and naval drill simulating the response to a People’s Liberation Army attack, as the island faces growing sabre-rattling from Beijing.

Wearing camouflage clothing, Tsai, who is also commander-in-chief of Taiwan’s armed forces, observed the joint exercise from aboard the Keelung, a Kidd-class destroyer, on Tuesday morning.

It was part of the self-ruled island’s annual Han Kuang exercise – its most important war games – that began on Monday and runs for five days.

The Chi Kuang frigate fires a missile during the drill off Taiwan’s northeast coast. Photo: Reuters

Waters off the northeast coast became a mock war zone, with more than 20 warships and 16 warplanes carrying out anti-air, anti-sea and anti-submarine operations.

A live broadcast on Taiwanese station SETN TV showed minesweepers opening the way for warships including the Keelung, frigates and a missile corvette to enter the area about 50 nautical miles off the strategic port of Suao.

A surveillance aircraft and helicopter were used to hunt down an attack submarine, while sonars and deep-water bombs forced it to emerge, and missiles and cannons were fired to destroy decoys.

The drill went for about two hours and also included a coastguard patrol vessel put to the test as a warship, firing several rounds of rocket-assisted projectiles into the sea.

Tsai later thanked the island’s armed forces for doing a “good job” and said their efforts during the drill showed their determination to defend and safeguard Taiwan. It was just the second time she has boarded a warship to observe a drill since she took office in 2016.

Navy personnel salute as President Tsai Ing-wen arrives on the destroyer at Suao. Photo: AFP

This week’s war games coincide with the island’s annual four-day Wan An air raid drills, which test the public response in the event of a PLA attack. Han Kuang is also being held at the same time as the US-led Rim of the Pacific Exercise is under way in the region.

The Taiwanese drills have been expanded this year as the island comes under increasing threats from the PLA, according to the military.

That includes reservists taking part for the first time, after a new training programme was introduced in March. They now undergo two weeks of training instead of five days in a bid to improve combat readiness, which has long been criticised by the US as inadequate.

In another Han Kuang first, the military has built temporary coastal fortifications near the Port of Taipei for the exercise, where a month’s supply of munitions – including artillery, rockets, machine guns and rifles – is stored.

Naval vessels seen during the Han Kuang exercise in waters off northeastern Taiwan on Tuesday. Photo: Reuters

Taiwan has come under growing pressure from Beijing, which claims the island as its own and has not ruled out the use of force to take it under mainland Chinese control. The pressure campaign includes regularly sending PLA warplanes into Taiwan’s air defence identification zone and staging war games close to the island.

As the Han Kuang exercise began on Monday, a PLA TB-001 reconnaissance and strike drone was seen flying near the east of the island, according to Japan’s defence ministry.

Taiwan has also become a major friction point between Beijing and Washington, which has moved closer to the island in recent years, though they do not have official ties. Tensions are high following reports last week that US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi plans to visit Taiwan next month, with the Chinese foreign ministry warning it would take “forceful measures” if she did so.

Separately on Tuesday, Tsai called on democratic and like-minded countries in the Indo-Pacific to work with Taiwan to fight against authoritarianism and protect their shared values of freedom and democracy. “Taiwan people will fight to safeguard ourselves and defend … and maintain regional security and stability,” she said in a pre-recorded video address to an Indo-Pacific security forum in Taipei.