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Taipei, Aug. 31 (CNA) Republic of China Defense Minister Wu Shih-wen said Thursday that the military will continue to try to obtain an early warning system after recent war games revealed Taiwan's limited means to counter mainland Chinese missile attacks.

At an annual press conference to commemorate Journalists Day, Wu said that Tuesday's Hankuang No. 16 exercises simulated a mainland Chinese attack on Taiwan using its Dongfeng 15 guided missiles, with results showing that Taiwan's Patriot Modified Air Defense System (MADS) would have a low interception rate.

Wu explained that no anti-missile system in the world can claim to have a 100 percent missile interception rate. Even the United States -- which has been developing such systems for decades -- have not had favorable test results, he added.

Wu went on to say that Taiwan's three Patriot batteries are equipped with a newer system than the one used by the US Army in the Persian Gulf War against Iraq's Scud missiles. However, he added that while the Patriot MADS is an anti-ballistic missile system, the Scud -- against which the Patriot only had limited success -- is not a ballistic missile.

Explaining further as to why the annual Hankuang exercises showed only limited anti-missile capability, Wu said that the three batteries are deployed around the periphery of Taiwan's major political and economic center -- Taipei. However, he went on, the simulated attacks focused on other regions unprotected by the anti-missile umbrella.

As a result of the heavy casualties and damage a mainland missile attack would cause if heavily populated western Taiwan were to be struck, Wu said that the military is still hopeful it can acquire an early warning radar system to allow for quicker reaction time when making defensive preparations.

Other than using an anti-missile system to counter mainland attacks, Wu said that immediate dispersion and evacuation would also be able to limit damage. He further said that if a missile were to strike Taiwan, panic might ensue, even if the material destructiveness was limited. Therefore, he added, the people's will to resist would also be a key factor against missile attacks. (By Fang Wen-hung)