The escalation between China and Taiwan continues to rise, with both sides increasingly demonstrating their weapons. The Taiwanese Navy organized maneuvers on Thursday off the southern coast of the island, deploying six of its most modern vessels, including two "stealth" corvettes of the Tuo Chiang class, developed to counter China's growing incursions in the area, as reported by Efe.
During the exercise, which took place in waters near the port city of Kaohsiung and did not involve live fire, the sailors had to respond to the potential appearance of several "enemy threats" at sea, requiring the deployment of the Haifeng missile brigade and six light vessels.
Upon detecting the hypothetical enemy ships, the Taiwanese vessels simulated an emergency departure from the port, reaching a "tactical position" at a speed of 30 knots (almost 56 kilometers per hour) to simulate the launch of Hsiung Feng III anti-ship missiles, supersonic medium-range projectiles.
The main focus of the exercise was on the Tuo Chiang class corvettes, a fast, stealthy vessel capable of carrying both anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles, and the light vessels of the Kuang Hua VI class, capable of carrying up to four anti-ship missiles.
"Although (the Tuo Chiang class corvettes) are small vessels, they can confront much larger ships of the People's Liberation Army (PLA, Chinese Army)," stated Lieutenant Hsiao in remarks to local and international press.
"These ships are an example of asymmetric warfare and Taiwan's commitment to enhancing its defensive capabilities. In response to the increasing incursions in the PLA's 'gray zone,' we are always prepared to respond quickly," added the officer.
This training is part of the maneuvers traditionally organized by the Taiwanese Armed Forces on the eve of the Lunar New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, which officially begins on January 29.
Tensions between China and Taiwan, an island autonomously governed since 1949 and considered by Beijing authorities as a "rebel province," intensified following the inauguration of the island's pro-independence President William Lai in May last year.
In 2024, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) of Taiwan detected a total of 3,067 Chinese warplane incursions around its territory, an 80% increase from the previous year and an annual record since these data began to be reported.