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Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)


August 2016 - Taiwan Special Weapons News

  • China capable of blockading, taking Taiwan's outlying islands: MND CNA 31 Aug 2016 -- China's military has the capability to blockade and seize Taiwan's outlying islands and has not cut back on military exercises targeting Taiwan, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) said in a report Wednesday.
  • Gun barrel snaps off tank, Army suspends use of CM-11s CNA 31 Aug 2016 -- Taiwan's Army has suspended the use of all of its CM-11 tanks to fire shots after the gun barrel of one of them broke off from the tank during a live-fire test at a training base in northern Taiwan on Wednesday.
  • Han Kuang military exercises end with completion of 1,072 tests CNA 29 Aug 2016 -- Taiwan's military ended its annual Han Kuang exercises last week after conducting and completing 1,072 tests, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said Monday.
  • Poor discipline blamed for Navy's July missile accident CNA 29 Aug 2016 -- The Ministry of National Defense cited problems with discipline, such as the failure to follow protocol and poor supervision, as causes of the Navy's accidental missile launch on July 1, in a report on the incident released Monday.
  • Prosecutors find negligence in Navy's mistaken missile launch CNA 29 Aug 2016 -- The Navy's mistaken launch of a missile that killed a fisherman on July 1 was caused by officer negligence, the Kaohsiung District Prosecutors Office said Monday.
  • President Tsai encourages soldiers to go shopping in uniform CNA 29 Aug 2016 -- President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is encouraging soldiers to wear their uniforms when they go out to have fun with friends and family on Armed Forces Day on Sept. 3 to help restore the military's self-esteem.
  • Independent Chinese travelers continue to increase: president CNA 27 Aug 2016 -- President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said Saturday that the number of Chinese nationals who travel independently to Taiwan has continued to increase, dismissing concerns that visitors from China have declined since her inauguration.
  • Defense university to be fined for expelling HIV-positive student CNA 27 Aug 2016 -- Health Minister Lin Tzou-yien (林奏延) upheld Saturday a decision by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to impose a NT$1 million (US$31,900) fine on National Defense University for discriminating against an HIV-positive student in 2013.
  • President defends her policy shifts CNA 26 Aug 2016 -- President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Friday defended her efforts to "adjust" her policies, saying that such adjustments are necessary to allow the country to achieve a sense of balance.
  • Upgrading soldiers' gear a top military priority: President Tsai CNA 25 Aug 2016 -- One of the top priorities of Taiwan's military this year will be to upgrade the individual equipment carried by its soldiers, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said Thursday during an inspection of a live-fire drill in Pingtung County.
  • Taiwan devising new military strategy: President Tsai CNA 25 Aug 2016 -- President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said Thursday a new military strategy, aimed at charting a direction and changing the culture of Taiwan's armed forces, is being drafted and will be completed by next January.
  • President inspects Han Kuang live fire drill CNA 25 Aug 2016 -- President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) donned a helmet and a bullet-proof vest Thursday as she inspected the annual Han Kuang military exercises as the commander-in-chief of Taiwan's armed forces for the first time since taking office in May.
  • Taiwan protests Hong Kong's denial of entry to certain nationals CNA 25 Aug 2016 -- The government has lodged a serious protest with Hong Kong over its decision to deny entry to certain Taiwanese nationals, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said Thursday.
  • 3 Taiwan Political Figures, Set to Speak at Forum, Denied Entry to Hong Kong VOA 24 Aug 2016 -- Beijing has barred three Taiwanese political figures from attending a forum in Hong Kong, according to event organizers.
  • Anti-landing drill held in Taichung as part of Han Kuang exercises CNA 23 Aug 2016 -- The military held an anti-landing drill in Taichung Tuesday, as part of this year's Han Kuang series of military exercises to test Taiwan's ability to counter various types of simulated attacks by China.
  • No preconditions for cross-strait exchanges: Presidential Office CNA 23 Aug 2016 -- The two sides of the Taiwan Strait should interact with each other meaningfully without preconditions in order to enhance mutual understanding, Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) said Tuesday.
  • Military retirees' pensions to receive new funding: official CNA 23 Aug 2016 -- President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has instructed the Cabinet to deal with the reform of the pension program for military retirees separately from those for civil servants and public school teachers and make a special budget for that purpose when necessary, according to the veterans affairs minister Tuesday.
  • Hsuehshan Tunnel to be closed for military exercises CNA 22 Aug 2016 -- The Hsuehshan Tunnel on the No. 5 National Freeway will be closed from 12 a.m. to 6 a.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday for Taiwan's annual Han Kuang military exercises, according to the National Freeway Bureau.
  • Taiwan to hold annual live-fire exercise CNA 21 Aug 2016 -- The Ministry of National Defense announced Sunday the drafting of reservists ahead of the start of Taiwan's annual live-fire exercise the following day.
  • China urged not to block Taiwan's international participation bids CNA 19 Aug 2016 -- A diplomacy scholar on Friday urged China not to pressure international organizations into rejecting Taiwan's participation, citing the results of a survey that showed China will lose favor with the Taiwanese people if it continues to.
  • Chinese passenger volume drops at most Taiwan airports in July CNA 19 Aug 2016 -- With the number of tourists from China traveling to Taiwan on the decline, the number of Chinese visitors who arrived at and departed from the nation's airports, with the exception of the Taipei Songshan Airport, fell in July, the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) said Friday.
  • Taiwan will not seek U.N. membership: foreign minister CNA 18 Aug 2016 -- Taiwan will not seek membership in the United Nations, but will continue to pursue meaningful participation in U.N. specialized agencies, Foreign Minister David Lee (李大維) said Thursday.
  • Existing cross-strait pacts to continue: Chinese official CNA 18 Aug 2016 -- A senior Chinese official has said that China will continue to honor its existing agreements with Taiwan but he has ruled out any new accords unless what Beijing sees as a precondition is met.
  • Taiwan urges China to open doors wider for communication CNA 18 Aug 2016 -- A top Taiwan official in charge of Chinese affairs on Thursday called on Beijing to open its doors wider to Taipei for communication and dialogue on issues covered by the agreements signed between the two sides.
  • MAC says it has not been invited to Taipei-Shanghai forum CNA 18 Aug 2016 -- Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said Thursday that its officials have not been invited to attend the upcoming twin-city forum between Taipei and Shanghai.
  • Officer did not hack military internal server: MND CNA 16 Aug 2016 -- The Ministry of National Defense (MND) on Tuesday denied a news report that an officer had hacked into the military's internal server and gained access to classified information.
  • Three soldiers killed after Army tank falls into river CNA 16 Aug 2016 -- An Army CM-11 tank fell into a stream in Pingtung County on Tuesday after a training exercise, leaving one soldier and two non-commissioned officers dead and one severely injured, the Army said.
  • All-volunteer force ambitions hit another bump in the road CNA 16 Aug 2016 -- The Ministry of National Defense announced Tuesday that it will continue to draft eligible citizens in 2017, the second time it has pushed back the target date for ending conscription as Taiwan tries to shift to an all-volunteer force.
  • Guidelines for `New Southbound Policy' adopted CNA 16 Aug 2016 -- The Presidential Office approved Tuesday a set of guidelines for the "New Southbound Policy," an important part of Taiwan's overall strategy to promote trade and economic ties with other countries.
  • Interior minister to visit Taiping Island CNA 15 Aug 2016 -- Interior Minister Yeh Jiunn-rong (葉俊榮） will lead a group of Coast Guard officers and academics on a visit to Taiping Island in South China Sea on Tuesday, Ministry of the Interior officials said Monday.
  • Step toward Orchid Island autonomy to be taken in September CNA 15 Aug 2016 -- The process of implementing autonomy on the offshore Orchid Island has been accelerated following a visit there by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday.
  • China holding 107 deported Taiwanese fraud suspects: official CNA 11 Aug 2016 -- A total of 107 Taiwanese nationals are currently being held in China after they were deported from other countries on suspicion of involvement in telecommunications fraud, Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正), deputy minister of Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC), said Thursday.
  • MAC vows to improve government-to-government dialogue with Beijing CNA 11 Aug 2016 -- The government's top priority at present is to improve government-to-government communication with Beijing to maintain existing mechanisms in cross-Taiwan Strait relations, a Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) official said Thursday.
  • Hsuehshan Tunnel to be closed for Han Kuang military exercises CNA 09 Aug 2016 -- The Hsuehshan Tunnel, which connects the greater Taipei area with northeastern Taiwan's Yilan County, will be closed for the first time for the annual Han Kuang military exercises at the end of August.
  • Beijing to seek to take more Taiwan fraud suspects to China: MOFA CNA 09 Aug 2016 -- Following the latest in a series of telecom fraud cases in which Taiwanese suspects caught in Kenya have been taken to China to face trial there at the demand of Beijing, a Foreign Ministry official said Tuesday that Beijing will seek to bring more Taiwanese suspects to China to be tried there.
  • Taiwan protests nationals' deportation to China CNA 08 Aug 2016 -- Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Monday expressed "adeep regrets" and "strong protests" over the forced deportation of five Taiwan nationals from Kenya to China, saying it showed "contempt for human rights."
  • Deporting Taiwanese to China a human rights violation: spokesman CNA 08 Aug 2016 -- The decision by Kenyan police to send five Taiwanese nationals to China after they were acquitted by a Kenyan court violated their human rights and went against international norms, Presidential Office spokesman Alex Huang (黃重諺) said Monday.
  • President apologizes to indigenous people on government's behalf CNA 01 Aug 2016 -- President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday issued a formal apology on behalf of the government to Taiwan's indigenous people for the discrimination and neglect they suffered over the past 400 years.



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