By Ann Wang
KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan (Reuters) – Taiwan’s navy simulated an effort to escort enemy ships on Thursday as it wrapped up three days of New Year’s drills, sending two of its newest and most advanced warships to lead a flotilla into the Taiwan Strait.
China, which claims democratic Taiwan as its territory, sends its air force and navy into the skies and waters near the island daily in what the government in Taipei calls a sustained campaign of pressure.
Last year, China also held two rounds of major war games over Taiwan.
At Zuoying Naval Base in the southern strait-bank city of Kaohsiung, two Tuo Chiang-class corvettes escorted four smaller Kuang Hua VI-class missile boats in the waters in an exercise simulating the approach of enemy ships.
“When we see a target at sea, when it continues to approach us, this is how we react,” Navy Capt. Chen Ming-feng told reporters at the base.
The Taiwanese-built Tuo Chiang corvettes were dubbed “carrier killers” by its navy because of their anti-ship missiles. They can also carry Sky Sword anti-aircraft missiles.
With a catamaran design, the state-of-the-art, highly maneuverable stealth ships are intended to destroy larger warships while operating close to Taiwan’s shores.
Taiwan’s navy is dwarfed by China’s, which has three aircraft carriers, nuclear-powered submarines and hundreds of other warships.
During the drills, which began on Tuesday, Taiwan’s air force also demonstrated its Patriot surface-to-air missiles and Ching-kuo Indigenous Defense Fighters to reporters.
Taiwan rejects Beijing’s claims of sovereignty and says only the people of the island can decide their future.
