Taiwan conducted this week one of the most realistic exercises of civil and military readiness of recent years, simulating a multi-crisis scenario that started with a Chinese blockade, evolved into a natural disaster and widespread sabotage, and concluded in a full-scale military invasion.
The exercise took place in the central Nantou county, as part of the strategy of president Lai Ching-te to strengthen the country's resilience against the growing military pressure from China.
Reuters gained exclusive access to the closed exercise, in which more than 370 government and military officials participated.
The "worst nightmare" scenario
The scenario started with a Chinese naval blockade of Taiwan.
Then, a powerful earthquake was used by Beijing as an opportunity to intensify the chaos, while cyberattacks, hijacking of television broadcasts, sabotage on critical infrastructure, mass withdrawals of deposits from banks, social unrest, and finally a full military invasion followed.
The goal of the exercise was to assess whether the local authorities, in cooperation with the central government and the armed forces, can maintain the operation of the region under wartime conditions.
Taiwan changes philosophy in civil protection
Taiwan has intensified in recent years the so-called "resilience exercises", in order to prepare both citizens and state services for crises ranging from natural disasters to military conflict.
These exercises differ significantly from older ones, which had been criticized as excessively pre-scripted and of limited practical value.
"Our opponent is located exactly opposite, on the other side of the Taiwan Strait. They are very close", the minister without portfolio Chi Lien-cheng, who coordinated the two-day exercise, told Reuters.
As he mentioned, significant shortages still exist and it is possible that the available resources will prove insufficient in a real crisis, however the purpose of the process is to establish whether those involved can implement the emergency response plans in practice.
New Chinese military activity around the island
China has never ruled out the use of military force to bring Taiwan under its control, while the government of Taipei insists that only the people of Taiwan can decide the future of the island.
On Thursday, while the exercise was being completed, Taiwan announced that China conducted yet another joint combat readiness patrol around the island, with the participation of warships and at least 22 military aircraft, among which were H-6 bombers with capability to carry nuclear weapons.
For its part, the Taiwan Affairs Office of China accused Lai Ching-te of deliberately escalating tension in the Taiwan Strait.
Earthquake, drones and operations under wartime conditions
The exercise started with a seven-hour staff simulation and continued the following day with operations in the field.
Among other things, the participants were called to deal with a Chinese drone attack against a power generation unit, while food distribution stations were also organized.
The scenario also included an earthquake of magnitude 6.8 Richter, which caused the death of 12 people and forced the authorities to manage simultaneously a natural disaster, infrastructure disruptions, social unrest, and military operations.
Closer cooperation of military and civil authorities
An American tactical mapping and communications system was used in the operations center, which provided real-time information on the positions of enemy forces.
At the same time, two digital platforms of the government of Taiwan were used, depicting the evolution of the crisis on interactive maps, such as the movement of ambulances and the allocation of critical resources.
According to the deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council of Taiwan, Lin Fei-fan, this year's exercise placed particular emphasis on the closer cooperation between the military reserves and the local governments.
As he mentioned, the message to China is that a society that is well-prepared makes any military operation highly costly and with an uncertain outcome.
Lessons from Ukraine and the Middle East
The Taiwanese officials mentioned that they utilized experiences from the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, so that the exercises approach real conditions as much as possible.
Among other things, the transfer of hospital functions to underground facilities was simulated, while professional hackers conducted cyberattacks on state networks and websites in order to test their endurance.
In one of the scenarios, a Chinese drone attack on the operations center left the fate of 75 officials unknown, forcing the authorities to activate an alternative command center.
Nantou as a safe haven
The strategic goal of the exercise was the transformation of Nantou, the only county of Taiwan without a marine coastline, into a rear guard area.
The region would function as a safe haven for residents of other areas who would flee their homes, but also as a support base for military operations while the battles would be conducted in the coastal areas.
During the exercise, the local authorities were called to answer even extremely detailed questions, such as how many men of conscription age can be mobilized overnight or how many cans of infant formula are available in the county's stocks.
The war of misinformation
Particular weight was also given to countering misinformation operations.
In the scenario, Chinese influence operations hijacked local television broadcasts, replacing their program with propaganda messages from Beijing, while leaflets with false information appeared on the streets.
The authorities held mock press conferences and were trained in the rapid recognition and refutation of fake news.
The 75-year-old neighborhood president Lee I-yuan, who participated in the exercise, stated that the training helped him better distinguish real from false information.
"If the other side attacks, it is certain that they will use artificial intelligence to spread false information", he noted characteristically.
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