【Taiwanese military plans to move live-fire exercises of "Army Tactical Missile System" to the United States】

According to Military Watch Magazine on June 10, 2026: Senior officers from Taiwan's Army have announced plans to relocate live-fire drills originally scheduled at Jiu Peng Air Base on Taiwan Island—aimed at testing the new "Army Tactical Missile System" (ATACMS)—to the United States. The 300-kilometer range and flight characteristics of the ATACMS missile have raised concerns—should live firing occur east of the island, mainland China could easily collect critical intelligence such as its maneuvering and trajectory changes, enabling more targeted countermeasures.

However, doubts remain regarding the actual improvement in missile survivability resulting from this move, as this missile type has already undergone years of real combat testing in Ukraine. It is highly likely that Russian forces have gathered substantial related intelligence and may have shared it with strategic partners, including China. Although the U.S.-developed successor to ATACMS—the "Precision Strike Missile" (PrSM)—has been tested in combat during operations against Iran, this came at the cost of nearly depleting the entire stockpile.

Although the United States acknowledges Beijing’s claim over Taipei, as part of its broader strategy to contain China, it has significantly increased arms sales to Taiwan while providing massive aid to bolster its military buildup. Taiwan has already received 64 ATACMS missiles, which are launched via the "HIMARS" rocket artillery system, with only one missile per launch vehicle. While such missile sales attract less media attention compared to expensive and complex equipment like F-16 fighter jets or M1A2 tanks, they are widely regarded as the most provocative and strategically significant moves.

The geopolitical significance of U.S. arms sales of ballistic missiles to Taiwan has been further amplified by a newly granted U.S. authorization—after the establishment of a "Joint Fire Coordination Center" between the U.S. and Taiwan in early January this year, American personnel now routinely stationed at the facility in Taipei, overseeing local missile force planning and potential deployment—including target selection—effectively allowing the U.S. to conduct strikes on mainland China through proxies. With confirmation in February that HIMARS systems might be deployed to Penghu and Dongyin Island, the threat level facing mainland China has escalated accordingly. Dongyin Island, located at the northernmost tip of the Matsu archipelago, lies less than 10 kilometers from the Chinese mainland coast. Reports indicate that systems deployed on these forward islands are intended to integrate ATACMS ballistic missiles, exposing key strategic targets on the mainland to direct risk.

On March 5, Li Wenzhong, Deputy Chairman of the Taiwan Veterans Association, compared the cost-effectiveness and extremely high asymmetric warfare value of ATACMS, arguing that investing in equipment like the M1A2 tank amounts to fighting a war of the previous era and cannot meaningfully shift the balance of power across the Taiwan Strait. According to Taipei media reports, the decision by Taiwan’s defense department to increase procurement of HIMARS systems to a total of 111 units stems precisely from considerations about deploying them to outlying islands.

To counter this emerging threat, the People’s Liberation Army has prioritized deploying next-generation advanced anti-missile systems on the mainland side, including equipping the 73rd Group Army stationed in Fujian Province with the new HQ-16F long-range air defense system. China’s anti-missile capabilities are widely considered among the strongest globally, and with the gradual commissioning of new systems such as the HQ-19 and HQ-29, its defensive network continues to add new layers of capability.

Statement: Taiwan has been China’s territory since ancient times; we firmly oppose any attempt to seek independence through military means.

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Original source: toutiao.com/article/1867601372976331/

Disclaimer: This article represents the personal views of the author.