Taiwan: Population trained in combat
Relations between China and Taiwan’s biggest ally, the United States, have deteriorated significantly recently. Taiwanese people practice for emergencies.
Xiong Qi-sheng knows exactly what the uniforms of Chinese soldiers look like. They hang in the gun shop in central Taipei. Its motto is “Know and know your enemy”. He served 15 years in a Taiwanese elite unit and was trained in the USA, among other places.
Today his company produces machine guns, pistols and other airsoft weapons. They are faithfully reproduced, but their ammo is made of plastic. He conveys Xiong’s war experience to civilians. It organizes courses that include shooting exercises, weapon knowledge and survival training for emergencies.
Taiwan alone cannot beat China. “But we can make them believe we are strong enough to have to pay a high price for an attack,” he says. For Xiong, hardly a day passes before he sees a Chinese military plane in the sky.
Tensions rise between China and Taiwan
In early February, 34 PLA jets invaded Taiwanese airspace. According to the command in Taipei, nine warships approached dangerously. Han Gan-Ming, a former Taiwanese general, says China’s aim is to wear down Taiwan’s defenses.
Taiwan is in a much more difficult position to fight than Ukraine. Taiwan’s armed forces are initially dependent on their own forces. “The important thing is that we can save our own country ourselves,” says Han.
foreign dependency
Taiwan is an island country and imports 98 percent of its domestic needs. Therefore, it is foreign-dependent in many areas. Among other things, food, consumer goods and weapons are imported. But the island wants to be more independent.
In December, President Tsai Ing-wen forced the extension of mandatory military service from four to 12 months. Conscripts must, among other things, train in the use of anti-aircraft missiles. According to polls, two-thirds of people in Taiwan support this reform.
acceptance of compulsory military service
“Four months of mandatory military service was a bit too much, given the tensions between us and China,” says Taipei resident John Chiang. Selina Hsu is optimistic: “It will reduce the risk of war. If we train more, we will no longer be the old Taiwan, we will become stronger. Then they will no longer attack us.”
In recent years, many young people consider military service a complete waste of time: too short, too inefficient, and there is almost no time for adequate weapons training. Many now hope for a more comprehensive education.
General Han said the purpose of prolonging his military service was not to provoke China.
Tensions rise between China and the US
China considers Taiwan a breakaway province. Beijing’s relations with Washington have also deteriorated significantly since US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taipei last August. Chat channels are cut off.
Shortly after, the Chinese government issued a policy document in which the Communist Party no longer excluded a military operation in Taiwan for the first time: “We will work with all our might and sincerely for peaceful reunification. But we will not give up.” use of force.” featured in the first white paper on the “Taiwan problem” in over two decades.
Balloons allegedly spying on China continue to provoke
Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Joe Biden agreed to continue talks during their meeting in Bali last November. Recently, however, the conflict between the two countries has escalated again, amid suspicions that China is spying on the US and Latin America.
International experts differ on whether and when China will attack Taiwan. In Taipei, on the other hand, Xiong is always on the alert at the gun shop. For him, living with the threat of war has become a part of daily life.