Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

During the Lunar New Year holiday, an unidentified aircraft flew into the airspace of Lienchiang County’s Dongyin Island (東引), a small militarized island in the Matsu archipelago.

The military later said that the plane was a Chinese Harbin Y-12 light civilian aircraft. Although the incident occurred on Feb. 5, the reason for the intrusion and controversy surrounding the incident continue to reverberate.

On the first day of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) and cruise missiles attacked administrative centers and military bases. It was a demonstration of the importance of early-warning systems and raises several questions for Taiwan.

The primary purpose of the military’s annual Han Kuang exercises is to test the nation’s defenses against an amphibious invasion by China, which is predicated on the assumption that Taiwan proper would be the primary theater of operations. The tri-service air defense, maritime interception and land defense exercises are the largest military exercises held by Taiwan’s armed forces.

While the exercises conform with Taiwan’s strategic defense goals in respect of conventional combat operations, the Ministry of National Defense needs to reassess whether the Han Kuang exercises adequately prepare the military to respond to new threats in an era of “gray zone” operations, particularly when directed against the outlying islands.