Taiwan taunts China with show of military might

Taiwan taunts China with show of military might

Taiwan has staged its biggest live-fire army drill in 20 years, simulating a triumphant repulsion of an invading Chinese force in a display designed to send a clear message to Beijing that the country will not be cowed.

More than 13,000 soldiers took part in the exercise, which included F-16 fighter jets and 550 pieces of artillery.

Tanks fired shells at targets floating on the sea as paratroopers posing as Chinese communist soldiers fell from the skies, simulating an airborne assault against key installations on the island.

China and Taiwan split after a civil war in 1949, and Beijing remains committed to bringing the democratic self-governing island back into its fold, by force if necessary.

Chen Shui-bian, the pro-independence Taiwanese president, said: "Across the Strait, China has always been the biggest national security threat to the Republic of China, Taiwan, for the past half a century."

He added that boosting Taiwan's defence would ensure peace and stability along the Taiwan Strait and the Asia-Pacific region.

Han Kuang - or Chinese Glory - exercises are held in Taiwan every year, and are designed to help prepare for a possible future invasion by the island's near-neighbour.