Witness: Taiwan conducts naval exercises to combat terrorism.. and the president pledges to strengthen and develop defense capabilities

Taiwan’s armed forces held military exercises on Saturday amid rising tensions with China, with a simulated hostage crisis in the southern city of Kaohsiung.

Frequent military exercises are held on the self-ruled island, which is under constant threat of invasion by China.

China considers Taiwan an integral part of its territory that it has not succeeded in annexing since the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949. But it asserts that it will return it to Chinese sovereignty one day, by force if necessary.

At the port of Kaohsiung on Saturday, officers from the coast guard, army, police and air force simulated a hostage crisis, with action movie music and talk of an “attack”.

Over the loudspeaker, the words “Here’s the (Taiwanese) Coast Guard! Stop the engine immediately!” and “We’re going to board your ship and search it.”

Small patrol ships surrounded the ship while a helicopter hovered overhead. The officers managed to “secretly” board the ship – and opened fire on the hostage-takers.

At the end of the training, the officers saluted President Tsai Ing-wen, who waved to them from the sidewalk.

“All those who participated in today’s training are our country’s front-line defenders. I would like to stress once again that we must strengthen ourselves in order to ensure peace in the Taiwan Strait,” Tsai said in a short speech.

“The more we unite, the safer we will be. The safer Taiwan becomes, the safer the world will be,” she added.

Relations between Beijing and Taipei, which have reached their lowest levels since President Xi Jinping came to power more than ten years ago, have deteriorated further in recent years, and China has intensified military incursions around the island.

On April 8, Beijing conducted three days of military exercises around Taiwan, which included simulated targeted strikes and the imposition of a blockade on the island.