TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense brought its extensive 10-day Han Kuang 41 military exercise (漢光演習), the island's largest annual war games simulating a potential Chinese invasion, to a conclusion on Friday (July 18). The comprehensive drills showcased Taiwan's enhanced combat readiness and operational resilience in both urban warfare scenarios and strategic deep defense operations across multiple locations. Military units throughout the island completed the final and most intensive phase of the exercise by midday, successfully demonstrating their capabilities to maintain sustained combat operations under simulated wartime conditions.
Defense forces positioned along Taipei's strategic Tamsui-Xinyi Line (淡水信義線), a major metro corridor running through Taiwan's capital, executed complex live-fire exercises designed to demonstrate their readiness for protracted urban combat scenarios. The military activities expanded beyond the capital region when authorities in five strategic locations—the eastern counties of Hualien and Taitung, the offshore island county of Penghu in the Taiwan Strait, and the frontline islands of Kinmen and Lienchiang facing the Chinese mainland—simultaneously launched coordinated urban resilience air defense drills at precisely 10 a.m., implementing temporary but strict controls on civilian movement.
Taiwan's Army 269th Brigade executed multiple iterations of sophisticated deep defense resistance operations in the strategic northern coastal areas of Bali (八里) and along Taiwan's North Coast defensive perimeter. The intensive drills focused on enhancing soldiers' tactical proficiency in complex urban terrain while improving their adaptability to rapidly changing battlefield conditions in densely populated areas. Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄), who has overseen the entire exercise, scheduled a formal address to participating military units following the conclusion of operations to recognize their professional dedication and commend their demonstrated operational readiness.
The meticulously coordinated urban resilience air defense component of the exercise, which took place during a precise 30-minute window between 10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., involved extensive civilian participation across multiple regions. Residents in affected areas received advanced notification to cooperate with emergency alarm systems, shelter-in-place directives, and related civil defense protocols designed to minimize casualties during potential air attacks. ◼
