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Defense ministry reiterates Taiwan's right to self-defense

ROC Central News Agency

03/08/2024 11:21 PM

Taipei, March 8 (CNA) Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) reiterated the right to self-defense in its statement released Friday, in response to media reports that the MND has adjusted its modus operandi for a self-defensive counterstrike.

The ministry cited international law as stating that when countries are attacked by foreign armed forces, they have the right to respond with armed force in self-defense.

The MND further said that if the enemy's warplanes or ships invade "our territorial airspace or waters," and attempts to expel them by identification, interception and broadcasting warnings fail, the frontline commander is authorized to take appropriate countermeasures to defend national security.

The statement came after a Chinese-language media report that "the military has adjusted its m.o. for a self-defensive counterstrike," following remarks by Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) during a legislative hearing on Thursday about the military's updated rules of engagement.

Answering a question from Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋), Chiu said that the military's definition of a "first shot" by China had been updated to denote a "first move" involving Chinese military aircraft or vessels "crossing the boundary," meaning entering Taiwan's territorial waters and airspace.

A "first move" of that nature would be "countered" by the armed forces, Chiu said.

In the past, the military's rules of engagement held that only when the enemy had fired a first shot -- be it artillery, cannons or missiles -- would the armed forces respond, the minister said.

The concept of a "first move" was adopted shortly after he assumed his current role in Feb. 2021, Chiu said, adding that the definition was further fleshed out after then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022, which prompted China to stage large-scale military exercises around Taiwan.

Given that Chiu's remarks on Thursday failed to make clear the timing of the so-called "first move," they sparked concerns over possible skirmishes with China.

On the sidelines of a legislative hearing on Friday, reporters asked Chiu, who said a day earlier that the situation in the Taiwan Strait was tense, whether Taiwan and China were on the brink of war.

Chiu said that as a soldier, it was his duty to ensure politics plays no role in his assessments as to the prospects for war, which is based on real time indications on the ground.

An enemy move could give seven to eight indications, and it is his job to ensure these are analyzed, the minister said, adding that the MND's ethos is to never be optimistic in its assessments.

(By Sean Lin, Matt Yu, Wu Su-wei)

Enditem/AW