2025 Han Kuang to combine civilian drills, war of attrition: Sources

Taipei, June 25 (CNA) Taiwan's largest-scale annual military drills, the Han Kuang exercises, will be combined with newly launched Urban Resilience Exercises this year to test the country's whole-of-society capability to win a war of attrition against China, sources told CNA Wednesday.

The annual Han Kuang exercises, which have served as Taiwan's major war games since 1984, consist of live-fire drills, computerized war games and seek to test Taiwan's combat readiness in the face of a possible Chinese invasion.

Taiwan's military announced earlier that this year's live-fire segment of the Han Kuang will be extended to 10 days from July 9-18, around the country, double earlier iterations which normally lasted five days.

An unnamed national security source told CNA Wednesday that as in 2024, this year's live-fire segment of the exercises will again be unscripted to test troop emergency response capabilities in 24/7 operational scenarios.

In addition, the live-fire component will be held alongside months-long Urban Resilience Exercises being held from April to July, which combine the Wan An air raid drills and Min An disaster response drills, in 11 counties and cities around the country, the source said.

Some of the scenarios to be tested during the July Han Kuang exercises involve the ability of Taiwanese society to counter false information, combat the Chinese Communist Party's united front work, and protect the nation's key infrastructure, the source added.

Another highlight of this year's Han Kuang exercises is that the Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of the Interior will for the first time hold joint evacuation drills at major hypermarkets.

Hypermarkets are a great location to conduct evacuation exercises, the source said.

Such a drill could lead to closer cooperation between private and public sectors in jointly enhancing the social resilience of Taiwan, the source said.

Such a drill could also raise awareness on self-defense among participating citizens, the source said.

Meanwhile, a separate source from the military told CNA Wednesday that this year's Han Kuang exercises will also test Taiwan's ability to win a war of attrition against China.

As shown in the example of the Israel-Iran war and the Ukraine-Russia war, modern warfare very likely turns into a war of attrition; namely, a war that is fought over a long period, the unnamed military source said.

The unnamed military source said such long-term warfare means there is little difference between the frontline and backline, and both service personnel and civilians have to work together to protect the country against invaders.

That is the whole point of combining 2025 Han Kuang's live-fire segment with civilian defense and Urban Resilience Exercises; to enhance the whole-of-society approach in defending Taiwan, the source added.

The Urban Resilience Exercises allow central government ministries and agencies and local governments to coordinate and work together to enhance overall local resilience and response capabilities, according to the Presidential Office.

Such efforts were launched under the Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee, an advisory group established by the Presidential Office.

The committee has pledged to enhance Taiwan's resilience by training civilian forces, securing strategic and critical supplies, reinforcing energy and key infrastructure, and ensuring the continued operation of medical, transportation, information and financial facilities.