|
China able to attack
Taiwan by 2020: report
Staff Writer, with CNA
Taiwan¡¦s latest national defense report highlights an increasing military threat
from China, saying that Beijing plans to boost its combat capabilities to the
point at which it could mount a full cross-strait attack.
China¡¦s combat capabilities are expected to reach that level in 2020, according
to the 12th National Defense Report released by the Ministry of National Defense
at a press conference yesterday.
The report said China has been developing and deploying various types of new
high-end weapons, as well as advanced cyberattack and defense technologies.
China also plans to ramp up its combat capabilities to the level where it could
launch an all-out attack on Taiwan, including on outlying islands, the report
said.
¡§Combined operations¡¨ remain the Chinese People¡¦s Liberation Army¡¦s basic combat
model and its military modernization is aimed at developing a credible deterrent
to any third-party intervention in a possible conflict with Taiwan, the report
said.
For example, China¡¦s deployment of the Dong Feng 21D anti-ship ballistic
missile, the so-called ¡§aircraft carrier-killer,¡¨ is aimed at hitting US
aircraft carriers, said Cheng Yun-peng (¦¨¶³ÄP), director-general of the ministry¡¦s
Department of Strategic Planning.
Cheng said that the 2020 timeframe is a rough estimate, but that China was
making major advances in its arsenal.
In the face of the military imbalance skewed in China¡¦s favor, Taiwan¡¦s military
is adhering to a concept of innovative, asymmetric warfare, in line with
national defense policies, Cheng said at the news conference.
In an effort to maintain adequate self-defense capabilities, Taiwan is
developing its own weapons and is also seeking to purchase arms from other
countries, he added.
Currently, Taiwan¡¦s indigenous Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missiles ¡X developed by
the Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology ¡X have the ability to counter
the threat of Chinese amphibious and aircraft carrier attacks, Cheng said.
In terms of jet fighters, Taiwan needs more advanced aircraft than its existing
fleet of F-16A/Bs, which are currently being upgraded with the help of the US,
Cheng said.
Military analysts say that China has at least 1,600 ballistic missiles aimed
across the Taiwan Strait.
Despite the potential military threat, Taiwan is cutting its own defense
spending, with the number of active-duty soldiers due to be reduced to 215,000
next year from the current 240,000.
The report also covered other issues, such as the military¡¦s 13 proposed
reforms, which focus on ensuring human rights, making sure service members have
a channel for filing complaints and reporting abuses, and reviewing disciplinary
confinement regulations.
The reform drive is also meant to improve administrative procedures for
disciplinary confinement and the facilities that military personnel are confined
in, as well as establishing reasonable punitive exercises for detainees, the
report said.
The focus on a complaint mechanism and confinement was a direct response to the
death of army corporal Hung Chung-chiu (¬x¥ò¥C), who died in July while serving his
mandatory military service due to heat exhaustion allegedly caused by intensive
training administered while in detention.
The incident sparked a public outcry, prompted the resignation of then-minister
of defense Kao Hua-chu (°ªµØ¬W) and led the government to pass legislation to turn
over military trials to civilian courts during peacetime.
Additional reporting by AFP
|
