 |
| A Taiwan flag is pictured during the national day celebration in Taipei, Taiwan, October 10,2021. |
International Military - Relations between Taiwan and China have been strained for years. China's great desire to acquire Taiwan territory has created tension between the two countries. Taiwan has lived with the threat of invasion from China for decades.
In recent years, China's aggressive capacity building has also caused great concern. Not to mention that the special military operation that Russia has launched into Ukraine since February 24 has increased Taiwan's anxiety about a similar move that could be taken by China.
The looming threat of invasion as well as China's constant intrusion in Taiwan's Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) requires them to make careful preparations.
Against the backdrop of the resistance posed by Ukrainian forces against the Russian military, Taiwan has released a civil defense manual for the first time. It contains survival advice to the population in case of war.
Quoted from Reuters, the Taiwanese military released a handbook on civil defense for the first time on Tuesday, April 12, 2022. The book will provide guidance on the survival of citizens in war scenarios.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has focused Taiwan's attention on how to deal with China. Moreover, China has stepped up military action in Taiwan in recent years to pressure Taiwan to recognize its claim to sovereignty.
China has also consistently maintained that the democratic island is a rogue province that must ultimately be reunited with China.
Quoted from the Eurasian Times, the handbook published by the Taiwanese military explains how to find a bomb shelter using a smartphone app, where to get water and food, and how to collect an emergency first aid kit.
A Taiwanese official said the move would enable safety preparedness and help people survive. "(We) provide information on how citizens should react in a military crisis and possible impending disasters," he was quoted as saying by the Eurasian Times.
He said that the handbook, which is based on similar manuals published in Sweden and Japan, would be updated with more local information. The guidebook circulated by Taiwan will contain the location of shelters, hospitals, and shops for daily necessities.
It shows that Taiwan has been closely watching the war in Ukraine where its citizens have access to underground bomb shelters.
The content of the Taiwan manual combines comic strips and illustrations to provide recommendations on how to defend against military attacks, such as recognizing air raid sirens and how to avoid missiles. The guidebook published by Taiwan is one of several efforts against a Chinese invasion that is believed to happen at any time.
Currently Taiwan has not detected any signs of a Chinese invasion. However, military experts and China observers have predicted that as a result of the Russia and Ukraine issues, China is likely to reconsider.
China may reassess or postpone the scenario of aggression against Taiwan. Some experts believe that Taiwan's role in changing global technology supply, especially silicon used to manufacture semiconductors, is a deterrent to China's attacks.
China relies heavily on Taiwanese technology to power the key industries it relies on. Even so, Taiwan has increased its vigilance since the start of Russia's special military operation into Ukraine.