Because of the dispute with China .. The Wall Street Journal: US soldiers are secretly training Taiwan's army

A US official revealed that US military personnel have been secretly training Taiwan’s army for at least a year to bolster the island’s defenses against China, he told AFP yesterday, confirming information published by the Wall Street Journal.

The American newspaper quoted unnamed official sources as saying that about 20 soldiers from the American special units and a company from the Marine Corps are training small units of the Taiwanese army and navy.

For his part, an American official told AFP, asking not to be named, that there are two groups: one of the special units and the other of the conventional units. That the number of members of the special units is “less than 20” and that the number of soldiers of the traditional units who serve in rotation in this country is “not large.”

The official did not specify when the personnel arrived Special units to the island, but confirmed that they had been there “less than a year.”

The US Department of Defense (Pentagon) did not deny the information published by the newspaper, and ministry spokesman John Supley said “I have no comment on specific operations, deployments or training, but I would like to stress that our support for Taiwan and our defense relationship are in line with the current threat posed by the People’s Republic of China,” he added, “and we call on Beijing to honor its commitments to the peaceful resolution of differences between China and Taiwan.”

US troops have been in Taiwan for at least a year secretly training its military, officials say, as concern over potential Chinese aggression mounts https://t.co/pNuMXXZMmE

— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) October 7, 2021

Taiwanese Prime Minister Su Qingchang said “Any just cause attracts great support.” We can and appreciate working with countries that share our values.”

Last November, Taiwanese newspapers quoted the island’s naval command as saying that marines and special forces had arrived in Taiwan. To train the Taiwanese army in amphibious operations, while the Taiwanese and US authorities denied this and spoke of defense cooperation only. With Taiwanese soldiers in training in Taiwan.

Serious concern

While China considers the island of 23 million people “part of its territory and will take it back by force if necessary,” the United States has increased arms sales to Taiwan in recent years.

Since the election of President Tsai Ing-wen in 2016, Beijing has intensified pressure on Taipei, who insists that it considers the island “independent” and not part of “One China.”

During the era of President Xi Jinping, Chinese warplanes almost daily violated the “Adez” (Adiz) Air Defense Identification Zone almost daily.

China recently made several incursions into the Taiwanese air defense zone, which prompted Washington to express its “grave concern” over Beijing’s “provocation.”

China marked its National Day on Friday with the largest air show of power against Taiwan to date, sending 38 warplanes to fly over the autonomous island, including nuclear-capable H-bombers. -6”.