Tag: Taiwan

Taiwan’s Defenses Against Information Warfare Gain Attention – WSJ

Western officials are studying the island’s methods for combating what its government says are attempts by China to sow fear
— Read on www.wsj.com/articles/taiwans-defenses-against-information-warfare-gain-attention-11661419802

Taiwan Unveils China’s Military Playbook

Taiwan, the independent and democratically governed island China claims as part of its own territory, has become the epicenter of a major geopolitical showdown between Washington and Beijing—to the point it was dubbed “the most dangerous place on Earth” by the Economist earlier this year amid fears its fate could spark a war between the two world superpowers. 

There are other important takeaways from the 208-page door stopper for defense wonks to pour through. One that stood out to us was how China plans to beef up its intelligence-gathering capabilities on Taiwan, including through the “deployment of JB series and Tiantong series reconnaissance and communications satellites to strengthen its supremacy in space and electromagnetic domains.” Another ominous takeaway is China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is “beefing up” amphibious capabilities and “strengthening training for its marines for joint landing operations.”
— Read on foreignpolicy.com/2021/11/11/can-taiwan-show-china-its-a-porcupine/

Duckworth Calls for Closer Ties to Taiwan, More U.S. Vaccine Diplomacy – USNI News

The Taiwan Strait is a key route of trade and is as important as the Malacca Strait, between the Malay Peninsula and the Indonesian island of Sumatra, for the free flow of commerce in the Indo-Pacific, a key member of the Senate Armed Services Committee said on Tuesday.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, (D-Ill.) said Indo-Pacific nations view the U.S. Navy’s strait transits through the Taiwan Strait and through disputed territory in the South China Sea as welcomed.

“Just being a presence in the region is needed” when the Chinese are using its fishing fleet to assert extra-territorial claims, she said.
— Read on news.usni.org/2021/08/10/duckworth-calls-for-closer-ties-to-taiwan-more-u-s-vaccine-diplomacy

China’s Ban on Taiwan Pineapples Backfires as New Buyers Step In

(Bloomberg) — China’s surprise ban on pineapple imports from Taiwan five months ago was widely viewed as an attempt to undermine President Tsai Ing-wen’s standing with a political constituency. Trade data show the move has produced anything but the desired effect.First-half numbers collected by Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture show growers of the fruit on the island have fared better since China blocked imports starting March 1, as sympathetic Japanese shoppers stepped in to provide support.
— Read on finance.yahoo.com/news/china-ban-taiwan-pineapples-backfires-210000757.html

Japan signals a ‘sense of crisis’ over Taiwan — this is why it is worried about China’s military aims

Japan is showing increased support for Taiwan in the face of relentless pressure from China. Here’s why Taiwan matters so much to Tokyo and what it’s prepared to do about it.
— Read on theconversation.com/japan-signals-a-sense-of-crisis-over-taiwan-this-is-why-it-is-worried-about-chinas-military-aims-164562

How To Lose A War Over Taiwan—Get Hacked, Panic

When Ian Sullivan fights a war over Taiwan on the side of the Taiwanese and their allies, he loses big. But the severity of his defeat belies just how close the fighting is until the very end.

The decisive battle isn’t on the ground or the sea or in the air, according to Sullivan. It’s online. Chinese hackers delay American reinforcements just long enough for Beijing’s troops to flatten Taipei.

Sullivan’s war isn’t real, of course. It’s a simulation based on Next War: Taiwan, a tabletop war game from GMT Games.

But as a simulation, it’s a surprising one. Despite decades of intensive modernization, a bold—some might say “reckless”—brute-force strategy and a firepower advantage in key phases of the fighting, China loses many of the most important pitched battles.

China ultimately wins the war not because it dominates the battlefield, but because it manages to delay U.S. reinforcements—oh, and it’s willing to wreck Taipei, kill countless civilians and target Taiwanese politicians.
— Read on www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2021/07/06/how-to-lose-a-war-with-china-over-taiwan-get-hacked-panic/

Taiwan is the new West Berlin in the cold war of ideas | TheArticle

As President Xi has warned, “anyone who attempts to split any region from China will perish, with their bodies smashed and bones ground to powder”. Britain and its allies must be equally resolute. Taiwan must not be allowed to fall to the CCP and its destructive Marxist-Leninism.

Like West Berlin during the Cold War, Taiwan is not just a fount of conflict: it’s a well of hope and optimism that there is a better path. And it’s not the only place where Britain should lend a hand.
— Read on www.thearticle.com/taiwan-is-the-new-west-berlin-in-the-cold-war-of-ideas

Amid drought, Taiwan plans more water curbs for chip hub Hsinchu | 1330 & 101.5 WHBL

TAIPEI (Reuters) – Taiwan will step up water usage curbs from June 1 for the major chip making hub of Hsinchu in a battle on islandwide drought, should there be no significant rain by month-end, the government said on Wednesday.
— Read on whbl.com/2021/05/19/amid-drought-taiwan-plans-more-water-curbs-for-chip-hub-hsinchu/