Taiwan to Begin 'Anti-Invasion' Drills Tomorrow as China Steps Up Pressure with Air Patrols

Amid rising military tensions in the Taiwan Strait, Taiwan's annual joint military drills simulating a Chinese military invasion are set to begin on August 5.

On August 4, just a day before the start of the Taiwanese military drills, the Chinese military mobilized fighter jets, drones, and warships to conduct joint combat readiness patrols around Taiwan, stepping up pressure.

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense announced that starting at 9:18 a.m. on August 4, 17 Chinese military aircraft, including J-10 and J-16 fighter jets, KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft, and drones, were dispatched to the Taiwan Strait.

Among them, 12 aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and its extension, entering the airspace off Taiwan's northern, central, and southwestern regions.

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense explained that Chinese warships also participated in the operation.

Taiwan's United Daily News reported that the Chinese military launched military activities targeting Taiwan less than a week after those on July 30, drawing attention to Beijing's intentions as the timing coincides with the launch of Taiwan's Han Kuang exercises.

The Taiwanese military plans to focus on inspecting actual combat response capabilities that reflect real battlefield situations during this year's 10-day, 9-night Han Kuang exercises.

Through 24-hour consecutive training without a prior script, the military aims to comprehensively inspect distributed command and mission execution capabilities, responses to gray-zone threats, the verification of new rules of engagement, joint amphibious landing interception, and deep long-term defense capabilities.

It is also reported that procedures similar to the U.S. military's "Backbrief" will be applied to this drill.

A backbrief is a procedure where a subordinate who receives instructions or operational orders from a superior summarizes and reports the content back in their own words to reduce errors caused by cognitive discrepancies during operations.

The Taiwanese military expects that this will enhance the simultaneous operational capabilities of Taiwanese soldiers on the modern digital battlefield.

In addition, considering how the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East have demonstrated tactical and technological advancements with drones performing reconnaissance, attack, and interception missions, the scale of drone training is reportedly being expanded to test tactics utilizing "swarm drone tactics" and corresponding defense systems.

Drills to blockade the Tamsui River, which is considered a high-probability infiltration route for the Chinese military's so-called "decapitation operation," will begin at 8:00 p.m. on August 6.

The drills will also mobilize some 20,000 reservists, including those from the Taiwan Army's Taipei City Reserve Brigade and the 137th Infantry Brigade.

The Lai Ching-te administration has allowed civilian media to accompany frontline troops and observe mission execution for the first time during the Han Kuang exercises, a move interpreted as an effort to test wartime press reporting procedures.

The Han Kuang exercises are annual military drills conducted since 1984 by the Taiwanese military to test its repelling capabilities and defense posture against a simulated armed invasion by China.

China has recently been intensifying its pressure on Taiwan without leading to an all-out military conflict by reinforcing gray-zone tactics using coast guard vessels and various official ships in the waters surrounding Taiwan and the South China Sea.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.