MND surprised by lawmaker suggestion to help U.S. clear mines

Taipei, April 13, (CNA) The Ministry of National Defense (MND) seemed surprised Monday by a Democratic Progressive Party lawmaker's suggestion that Taiwan's military could support the United States in mine-clearing operations in the Strait of Hormuz.

In presenting the idea at a legislative committee hearing, Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said U.S. President Donald Trump had expressed dissatisfaction with allies for not dispatching forces to assist with mine-clearing operations in the Strait of Hormuz.

With that in mind, Wang asked gathered officials whether Taiwan's military should express its willingness to support such efforts.

"The idea is quite creative, but we have not thought about it," replied Vice Defense Minister Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉).

National Security Bureau Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) described the issue as "hypothetical."

"Taiwan's situation differs from that of other U.S. allies," he said, noting that any troop deployment would require an assessment of threats facing Taiwan, making the conditions more complex.

Hsu, meanwhile, said the key concerns would be logistical, supply, and operational support, and he noted that the Navy's minehunter vessels are relatively small and might not be able to reach the Strait of Hormuz to begin with.

Also, because Taiwan faces constant harassment from Chinese naval vessels, its Navy has major responsibilities in Taiwan's own waters, meaning that any deployment of already limited mine countermeasure capabilities abroad would have to be carefully evaluated, Hsu said.

It was unclear what prompted Wang's idea to even consider volunteering Taiwan's Navy to clear mines in the Strait of Hormuz, but he also asked at the hearing whether the Navy's mine-clearing capacity was sufficient for its own needs.

In response, Navy Chief of Staff Chu Hui-min (朱惠民) said only that "we are continuing to work on it."