South China Sea: Taiwan fires up missile tests to coincide with Beijing’s month of military drills
- Taipei will conduct six rounds of missile tests while carrying out other drills in what is perceived as a warning to the mainland
- Researcher at Kuomintang think tank says Taiwan seeks a military balance with Beijing, or to at least not drop behind
From Wednesday, the government-funded National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology plans to test-fire missiles off the eastern and southern coasts, with five more rounds planned between March 10 and March 19, according to a notice made public by the Taiwan Fisheries Agency.
It said they would test the power of missiles launched from the Jiupeng military base in the island’s southernmost county of Pingtung and the eastern county of Taitung.
The notice also said there was “no ceiling” on the height of the missile tests on March 10-11 and March 18-19, meaning they will stretch 300km into the Pacific, encompassing the waters off the counties of Hualien and Taitung, including Orchid Island.
There was no mention of which missiles would be tested, but the semi-official Central News Agency quoted an unnamed retired institute official as saying they would likely be Hsiung Feng-2E (Brave Wind-2E) cruise missiles and the extended-range version of the Thunderbolt-2000 tactical missiles.
