Taiwan simulates Chinese assault and internet disruption in annual drills

Taiwan's military conducted a simulation of Chinese forces attempting to land troops on the strategically important Penghu Islands on Monday, as part of the annual Han Kuang military exercises. The exercise, which began last week, involved troops from the First Theatre Command firing weapons on a beach in Penghu, a tactic designed to demonstrate a multi-layered defense against a simulated Chinese invasion.

Penghu, situated closer to Taiwan's main island than to mainland China, is viewed by Taiwanese strategists as a potential initial target for Beijing. The drill also marks the first time Taiwan will deliberately slow mobile internet speeds during the civil defense portion of the exercises, testing how citizens would communicate if bandwidth became scarce in emergencies such as disasters or a Chinese invasion.

The government has widely publicized the drill, sending text messages and social media updates to inform citizens about the simulated disruption of communication services.