Taiwan launches five‑day combat‑readiness drills amid rising China pressure

Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense began a five‑day "Immediate Combat Readiness" exercise on June 22, deploying troops, tanks, armored vehicles and live ammunition across the island. The drills simulate a rapid shift from peacetime posture to wartime operations, testing command‑and‑control, logistics, coordination and the speed of troop mobilization. Units were observed moving through urban traffic in Taoyuan and conducting live‑fire firing of rockets and anti‑tank missiles on the coast near Taichung.

The exercise follows a recent live‑fire drill on June 10 and is part of Taiwan's annual summer training schedule that includes a joint‑defense drill in July and the large Han Kuang war games in August. Chinese military activity continued nearby, with the Taiwanese defense ministry reporting 21‑23 Chinese aircraft, seven warships and five government vessels operating in the island's vicinity during the same period. In recent months Taiwan has also tested U.S.-made HIMARS rocket systems, underscoring growing defence cooperation with the United States.