Taiwan’s military has launched a five-day-long series of maneuvers that will see tanks and troops crisscross the south, testing their battle readiness.
It’s not every day you see a tank, armored vehicle, or self-propelled gun mixing with ordinary civilian traffic. But in the south of Taiwan, the five days beginning November 9 are not going to be ordinary days.
During this period, the military will be conducting a series of maneuvers across the region as part of seasonal training.
Among the drills planned is one scheduled for Wednesday that will see troops practice evacuating, camouflage, and maintaining their ability to fight.
Other drills will include preparing to repel an enemy landing on shore.
As this training goes on, Taiwan’s Air Force is doing some practicing of its own. On November 18, it will formally put new F-16V fighter jets into service. These are among the 141 F-16A/B’s set to be upgraded to F-16Vs in the long term. President Tsai Ing-wen is expected to head south on the 18th to oversee the planes’ roll-out ceremony.