Taiwan simulates response to large scale disasters, Chinese threats

27/3/2025 15:40

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te oversaw on Thursday the first civil defence drills under his newly created social resilience committee simulating how to respond to a large-scale disaster like a tsunami or attacks on critical infrastructure.



The drill, in the southern city of Tainan, was held under the auspices of Lai's new Whole-of-Society Defence Resilience Committee, set up last year to prepare to deal with natural disasters or other emergencies such as an attack by China, which views the democratically-governed island as its own territory.



Speaking to participants after viewing some of the drills, Lai said these were the first live drills for the committee and involved around 1,500 people and there would be more next month.



"The aim is to build the resilience of the Taiwanese society to cope with large natural disasters or major accidents that cause a lot of injuries, or regional geopolitical changes. We dare not fail to prepare," he added.



"We hope that through strength, not only of the military but also the resilience of the entire society in defence, we can ensure Taiwan's security and ensure that peace can be achieved through the demonstration of our strength."