Announcement comes after reports of Chinese drills in South China Sea planned for August
Taiwan News
Date: 2020/05/13
By: Kelvin Chen, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning and its strike group in the South China Sea. (AP photo)
The drills, which will be supervised by Ministry of National Defense (MND) officials, are meant to maintain the shooting effectiveness of various mortar and machine-gun positions on the islands.
The Dongsha islands, which consist of one island, two coral reefs, and two banks, are located about 444 km from Kaohsiung. The designated national park spans 353,668 acres and features vibrant coral and a seagrass bed ecosystem.
Reports on Monday stated that China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) plans to hold a large-scale landing exercise in the South China Sea in August to simulate an invasion of the Taiwan-controlled Dongsha islands (Pratas islands, 東沙群島). Kyodo News reported that the PLA's landing exercise would be supervised by the Southern Theater Command and involve large numbers of landing ships, hovercraft, helicopters, and marines. [FULL STORY]
