Taiwan says its military can respond rapidly to any sudden Chinese attack

TAIPEI - Taiwan's military can respond rapidly to any sudden Chinese attack with all units able to operate under a decentralized mode of command without awaiting orders from above, Taipei's defense ministry said in a report to lawmakers.

Democratically-governed Taiwan, which Beijing views as its own territory, has repeatedly warned that China could try to suddenly shift its regular drills into active combat mode to catch Taiwan and its international supporters off guard.

China's military operates around Taiwan on an almost daily basis, in what Taipei says is part of a "grey zone" harassment and pressure campaign that stops short of actual combat but is designed to wear out Taiwan's armed forces by putting them constantly on alert.

The defense ministry said in its report that the frequency and scale of China's military activities have increased year by year, including their regular "joint combat readiness patrols".

The military has a standard operating practice on how to raise its combat alert level in case Chinese exercises move "from drill to war", the ministry added.

"If the enemy suddenly launches an attack, all units are to implement 'distributed control' without waiting for orders and, under a 'decentralized' mode of command, carry out their combat missions," it said, without giving details.

Defense Minister Wellington Koo is scheduled to take questions from lawmakers on the report on Wednesday.

PRACTICE ATTACKS

China has also been practicing how to attack Taiwan, and sending its warships further and further out into the Pacific and down towards Australia and New Zealand, the ministry added.

"The Chinese communists have never renounced the use of force to annex Taiwan and continue to intensify joint training across services, shifting from purely military drills to routine, multi-service, real-combat-oriented exercises."

Taiwan's government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims, saying only the island's people can decide their future.

On Monday, China's defense ministry said Taiwan President Lai Ching-te was "hyping up" the threat from China and "peddling war anxiety".

"We hope that the broad mass of Taiwan compatriots will clearly recognise the extreme danger and harmfulness of the Lai authorities' frantic 'preparing for war to seek independence'," the ministry said in a statement.

Ben Blanchard/Reuters