25 C
Athens
Δευτέρα, 17 Ιουνίου, 2024

Taiwan to extend compulsory military service, official says, as China shows air power

Περισσότερα Νέα

- Advertisement -

A plan to extend compulsory military service in Taiwan to one year from the current four months will be announced on Tuesday, a senior government official said, as the island deals with rising Chinese military pressure.

The office of Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said she will call a national security meeting on Tuesday morning to discuss reinforcing the island’s civil defence, followed by a news conference on unspecified new civil defence measures.

Tsai’s security team, including high-level officials from the defence ministry and the National Security Council, has been reviewing Taiwan’s military system since 2020 amid increasing threats from China, according to the official.

Taipei, which rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, on Monday reported the largest-ever Chinese air force incursion into the island’s air defence identification zone, with 43 Chinese planes crossing an unofficial buffer between the two sides.

China also staged war games near Taiwan in August following a visit to Taipei by then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

- Advertisement -

“China’s various unilateral behaviours have become a major concern for regional security,” said the official, who took part in the high-level security discussion and declined to be named.

Under the plans due to come into effect in 2024, conscripts would undergo more intense training, including shooting exercises and combat instruction used by U.S. forces, the official said.

Conscripts would be tasked with guarding key infrastructure, enabling regular forces to respond more swiftly in the event of any attempt by China to invade, they added.

Taiwan’s defence ministry declined to comment.

Tsai is overseeing a broad modernisation programme, championing the idea of “asymmetric warfare” to make the island’s forces more mobile, agile and harder to attack.

The official Central News Agency, citing government and ruling party sources familiar with the matter, first reported late on Monday that Taiwan’s government would be announcing its plan to extend compulsory military service.

Taiwan has been gradually shifting from a conscript military to a volunteer-dominated professional force, but China’s growing assertiveness towards the island it claims as its own, as well as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, have prompted debate about how to boost defence. Russia calls the war a “special operation”.

Previous governments under the ruling Democratic Progressive Party and the main opposition Kuomintang cut compulsory service for men from more than two years to four months to please younger voters as tensions had eased between Taipei and Beijing.

Reuters has reported that military training in Taiwan, particularly for conscripts and reservists, had deteriorated.

In recent years, China has stepped up diplomatic, military and economic pressure on the self-governed island to accept Beijing’s rule. Taiwan’s government says only Taiwanese people can decide their future and vows to defend itself if attacked.

- Advertisement -

ΑΠΑΝΤΗΣΤΕ

εισάγετε το σχόλιό σας!
παρακαλώ εισάγετε το όνομά σας εδώ

The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.

Ροή ειδήσεων

ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ

Netherlands alleges Dutch warship confronted by Chinese military aircraft’s provocative manoeuvres

The Netherlands alleged that its warship HNLMS Tromp was confronted by the Chinese aircrafts while enforcing UN sanctions on North Korea. The Dutch Defense Ministry...

South China Sea: Philippines dismisses China’s ‘absurd’ demand over supply missions

The Philippines has said it will continue to maintain and supply its South China Sea outposts without seeking permission from any other nation, dismissing...

Pakistan’s Political Future At Risk – OpEd

By Saad Hafiz This past year has been very uncertain in Pakistan. There have been a lot of upsetting events that have tested the country’s...

China swimmers doping scandal out in the open

That China has consciously used its financial clout to influence international organizations in its favour is a well-known fact. That this has happened in...

ΔΗΜΟΦΙΛΗ ΑΡΘΡΑ

Το λάθος με το κλιματιστικό που «φουσκώνει» τον λογαριασμό του ρεύματος

Για τη σωστή και οικονομική χρήση του κλιματιστικού, ειδικά την περίοδο που οι θερμοκρασίες έχουν χτυπήσει «κόκκινο», μίλησε στο Open o ενεργειακός επιθεωρητής, Μιχάλης...

Έρχονται αυξήσεις σε εμφιαλωμένα νερά, αναψυκτικά, γάλα και μπίρες: Οι νέες τιμές

Συνεχίζεται η μάχη των καταναλωτών με την ακρίβεια καθώς έρχονται νέες αυξήσεις ενώ από 1η Ιουλίου αναμένεται και το εγγυοδοτικό αντίτιμο. Όπως αναφέρει το MEGA, πρόκειται για ένα περιβαλλοντικό «τέλος» καθώς ακριβαίνουν οι συσκευασίες από αλουμίνιο, γυαλί και πλαστικό. Έτσι,...

Αφυδάτωση: Τα sos σημάδια και πώς θα την προλάβετε

Ο υδράργυρος βρίσκεται στα… κόκκινα, με μια σειρά κινδύνων - μεταξύ των οποίων και η αφυδάτωση- να απειλούν την υγεία,. Η αφυδάτωση συμβαίνει όταν...

Ο καύσωνας του 1987: Το καλοκαίρι της φρίκης, οι 1.300 νεκροί και μια Αθήνα γεμάτη φέρετρα

Το 1987, ήταν μια χρονιά ακραίων καιρικών φαινομένων. Ο Μάρτιος ήταν ένας μήνας ασυνήθιστα παρατεταμένων χιονοπτώσεων. Τη Δευτέρα 9/3/1987, το πάχος του χιονιού στο κέντρο της Αθήνας,...