Taiwan examining Israel-Hamas war to prepare for a China attack
By Ryan General
October 12, 2023
Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense (MND) has established a task force to examine the recent war between Israel and Hamas.
Prep for attacks: In a statement to the press on Thursday, Taiwan‘s Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng announced the creation of the task force with a focus on intelligence gathering in preparing for potential enemy attacks.
“The initial (lesson) is that intelligence work is very important,” Chiu was quoted saying. “With intelligence, many countermeasures can be made. A war can even be avoided.”
China’s military exercises: The announcement comes amid China’s aggressive military exercises near Taiwan.
Last month, Taiwan expressed caution against China’s “military harassment” after Beijing dispatched 103 warplanes toward the island within a 24-hour period. The move, which included 40 of the deployed warplanes breaching the symbolic median line dividing their territories, marked a recent high in China’s ongoing efforts to assert control over the island, according to Defense Ministry spokesperson Sun Lifang.
Commitment to war prevention: While acknowledging the differences between Taiwan’s situation and that of Israel and Hamas, Chiu noted the necessity of preparing for war while avoiding any actions that could provoke it.
Chiu also expressed concerns about the “harrowing” consequences of conflict and reiterated that Taiwan’s armed forces are committed to preventing war through diligent monitoring of any signs of enemy advancement. While he did not provide a direct answer regarding Taiwan’s ability to call up 300,000 reservists in a single day, he noted the presence of mobilization plans and high attendance at past reservist training programs.
Information dissemination: During a legislative meeting, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang Ting-yu urged the MND to work with the Ministry of the Interior to increase public awareness of air raid shelter locations. Currently accessible through a QR code in the All-Out Defense Handbook, Wang suggested printing and distributing the information to residents at the district, borough, and neighborhood levels.
Chiu acknowledged Wang’s proposal, noting that it should be evaluated in the regular meetings with various government agencies by the All-Out Defense Mobilization Agency.
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