Taiwan Closes Major Bridge During Military Drill to Block Potential Chinese Advance on Taipei

On Tuesday, to conduct a cavity exercise, the Taiwanese military closed a strategic bridge in Greater Taipei by the Armed Forces, and a simulation of Taipei trying to slow down the force of China, which is heading its way to the capital city, Central News Agency (CNA) reported.

Wanban Bridge connecting the Banqiao District in New Taipei with the Wanhua District in the city of Taipei was completely closed at 11 pm (local time) on Monday to the 6 am (local time) of Tuesday to accommodate the drill. Within two hours, troops were able to erect a 4 weeks blockade on the 690 meter span which indicates a rapid response capability by Taiwan against possible Chinese ground incursions.

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The blockade utilized both military and civilian facilities, overlapped road blocks, barbed wire, city buses and recently purchased Hesco bastions modern war zone barrier systems employing selected wire mesh products in Iraq and Afghanistan.

It was an exercise simulating a People Liberation Army (PLA) attempt to breach the bridge with disguised military vehicles that is a probable tactic in a so-called gray zone that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) frequently uses to confuse war and peace.

The simulated enemy was located by drones used by military police and counterattacked by a defensive firefight. In the situation, the PLA forces breached three out of the four layers of barricades lines and were neutralized by the Taiwanese soldiers using snipers and combat vehicles of the "Clouded Leopard" series. The operation was ended with a full bridge clearance and a spot check.

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The ministry of National Defence in Taiwan stressed that the exercise is one of the several initiatives that are aimed at enhancing the preparedness of war in the urban areas and averting enemy movements towards government and infrastructural centres such as the Presidential Office Building.

The seventh day of Taiwan extended live-fire energy in the Han Kuang maneuver, the longest in Taiwan history, officially started on July 2, was held on Tuesday. The long-running nature of this year, which is twice as long as past exercises, reflects the increasing gravity of Taiwan faced by Chinese military bullying.

In addition to providing training, the bridge exercise served as a warning to Beijing that Taiwan's defenses are strong, alert, and ready to defend their independence.

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