Taiwan’s military has simulated a Chinese air and coastal assault on the strategically important Penghu Islands as part of its annual Han Kuang war games, while authorities are also preparing to slow mobile internet speeds for the first time during the civil defence exercise.
The 10-day military exercise, which began last week, is designed to test Taiwan’s ability to respond to different scenarios involving a potential Chinese attack. Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory and has not ruled out the use of force to take control of the island.
In the early hours of Monday, troops from Taiwan’s First Theatre Command conducted a live-fire drill on a beach in Penghu, using M60A3 tanks, artillery and anti-aircraft weapons.
The forces practised building what the military described as a “multi-layered” defence against a simulated enemy attempting a rapid coastal landing.
Located in the Taiwan Strait, the Penghu Islands are considered strategically important because of their proximity to Taiwan’s main island. Taiwanese military planners view the islands as a potential target in a conflict, with concerns that they could be used as a base for missile and drone attacks.
Reuters was granted rare access to the exercise, observing ground troops preparing ammunition and taking up firing positions under cover of darkness before the drill began.
Reservists from Penghu also participated as part of their 14-day training programme, reflecting Taiwan’s efforts to integrate reserve forces more closely into its military planning.
Meanwhile, authorities in central Taiwan are set to deliberately slow mobile internet speeds on Monday as part of a civil defence exercise.
The test is intended to assess how people would communicate if mobile network capacity became limited during emergencies, including natural disasters or a potential Chinese invasion.
Essential services such as ATMs, traffic signals and emergency ambulance communications will remain operational. Landline and fixed internet services will also not be affected.
The government has informed the public about the exercise through mobile phone alerts and social media messages. A similar drill is scheduled to take place in northern Taiwan, including Taipei, on Thursday.
Taiwan’s government rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims and maintains that the future of the island can only be decided by its people.
