DefenceTalkChina would probably gain air superiority very quickly in any attack on Taiwan, something Russia crucially failed to do in its invasion of Ukraine last year, leaked US intelligence documents show, according to media reports Saturday. The classified documents, allegedly leaked by a US national guardsman in the worst US security breach in a decade, […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-would-gain-swift-air-superiority-over-taiwan-us-leaks-show-80019/

DefenceTalkChina sent warships and aircraft near Taiwan for a second day on Friday and insisted the island remains “an inseparable part of China”, after President Tsai Ing-wen angered Beijing by meeting with US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Three Chinese warships sailed in waters surrounding the self-ruled island, while a fighter jet and an anti-submarine helicopter […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-sends-warships-and-aircraft-around-taiwan-for-second-day-80015/

DefenceTalkAn American warship sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Thursday, the US Navy said, in a move likely to anger Beijing. The guided missile destroyer USS Chung-Hoon “conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit Jan. 5 (local time) through waters where high-seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law,” the Navy said […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-navy-warship-transits-through-taiwan-strait-79707/

DefenceTalkEuropean powers must do more to dissuade China from invading Taiwan, including being prepared to unleash painful economic sanctions and train Taiwanese troops, the former head of NATO said Thursday. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who is visiting Taipei, said European and NATO powers were “too naive” in the run-up to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and risked […]https://www.defencetalk.com/ex-nato-chief-says-europe-too-naive-on-chinas-taiwan-threats-79690/

DefenceTalkThe US military must be ready to respond to a potential invasion of Taiwan as soon as this year, a senior admiral said Wednesday, signaling heightened alarm over Beijing’s intentions towards the island. Admiral Michael Gilday, chief of US naval operations, is the latest senior official in Washington to raise concerns that China’s President Xi […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-must-prepare-now-for-china-invasion-of-taiwan-admiral-79533/

DefenceTalkPresident Xi Jinping on Sunday vowed China would “never commit to abandoning the use of force” when it comes to the issue of Taiwan, in a speech marking the beginning of the Communist Party Congress in Beijing. “Resolving the Taiwan issue is a matter for Chinese people themselves, and must be resolved by Chinese people […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-will-never-commit-to-abandoning-the-use-of-force-on-taiwan-xi-79518/

DefenceTalkThe United States will help Taiwan “develop the capability to defend itself” from a Chinese invasion, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Sunday, stopping short of President Joe Biden’s vow to send troops to the island. “We’re committed to helping Taiwan develop the capability to defend itself,” Austin said in an interview with CNN. Washington […]https://www.defencetalk.com/us-defense-chief-vows-to-help-taiwan-defend-itself-79460/

DefenceTalkLife may seem tranquil on Japan’s remote Yonaguni island, where wild horses graze and tourists dive to spot hammerhead sharks, but China’s recent huge military exercises have rattled residents. The western island is just 110 kilometres (70 miles) from Taiwan, and a Chinese missile fired during the drills last month landed not far from Yonaguni’s […]https://www.defencetalk.com/chinese-moves-on-taiwan-rattle-remote-japanese-island-79409/

DefenceTalkChinese president Xi Jinping has set a timeline for his nation’s military to be capable of taking Taiwan by 2027 — just five years from now. Recent events in the Taiwan strait have some questioning the strategic situation and prospects of a near-term invasion.  Colin H. Kahl, the undersecretary of defense for policy, said that […]https://www.defencetalk.com/china-may-draw-lessons-from-russian-failures-in-ukraine-79362/

DefenceTalkTaiwan said a Chinese military reconnaissance drone entered its air defence zone on Monday, the latest incursion as relations between the two neighbours remain tense. The drone, identified by Taipei’s defence ministry as a BZK-007 vehicle, crossed into the southwest corner of the island’s air defence identification zone (ADIZ) along with eight Chinese warplanes. Taiwan’s […]https://www.defencetalk.com/taiwan-says-chinese-military-drone-entered-air-defence-zone-79333/