TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan has successfully completed a comprehensive nationwide defense resilience drill, Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) announced Friday (March 28), highlighting a growing international trend as democracies worldwide strengthen their civil defense capabilities. Her announcement coincided with the European Commission's release of its EU Preparedness Union Strategy, reflecting what security experts describe as an emerging consensus among democratic nations about the importance of whole-society approaches to national resilience.
In a detailed Facebook post, Vice President Hsiao praised the collaboration between the Presidential Office's Whole of Society Defense Resilience Committee and local authorities in Tainan City, which jointly executed the 2025 field exercise with notable success. She drew parallels to the European Union's recent policy shift that has elevated societal resilience to a core security objective across its 27 member states. The EU strategy document outlines a comprehensive approach to preparedness against diverse threats ranging from extreme weather events and public health emergencies to energy security challenges and organized criminal activities, while specifically acknowledging the need for democratic societies to prepare for potential authoritarian aggression.
The international dimensions of Taiwan's resilience efforts were emphasized by National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆), who noted that the European strategy places particular emphasis on real-time coordination mechanisms among allied nations during crises. Lin revealed that the Tainan exercises had drawn official observers from multiple countries, underscoring the growing international interest in Taiwan's defense preparedness amid regional tensions. Drawing on lessons from global crisis management experiences, he articulated a fundamental principle driving Taiwan's approach: effective preparedness serves as a bulwark against public panic, highlighting why regular, realistic drills have become an essential component of the island's security strategy.