TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) released its biennial defense report on Tuesday (Sept. 12), focusing on regional threats and combat readiness and featuring China's aircraft carrier, Fujian, expected to be commissioned in 2025.
The inclusion is aimed to heighten public awareness of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) threats, though the report devoted only two pages to recent "cognitive warfare threats" from the CCP.
The significant difference in this report was its great attention to potential regional threats and future scenarios. Topics were covered, including changes to conscription and reserve force improvement reforms.
The head of the Strategic Planning Department, Hsu Yun-Chen, indicated future assessments will consider CCP's Dong Feng-31 and Dong Feng-41 missiles. The report views the forthcoming Fujian aircraft carrier as a significant maritime threat that Taiwan must proactively counter.
The report's discussion of drones was limited. While charts depict the expansionist behavior of the PLA, they drew criticism for lacking information about Taiwan's withdrawal from the west of the midline in 1999.
Hsu Yun-Chen suggested potential revisions to the report to deepen the Taiwanese public and regional partners' awareness of China's threats toward Taiwan.