The Invaders' Path? Night Exercises on a Key Taiwanese Bridge

On the second day of the 'Han Kuang' exercise — a ten-day annual war drill designed to test the island's ability to repel an attack — Taiwanese soldiers practiced yesterday, Thursday, the defense of the 'Danjiang' bridge. This new structure is the longest cable-stayed bridge of its kind in the world, crossing a river that leads to Taipei from the direction of China. Soldiers installed barriers, deployed barbed wire, placed sandbags, and positioned trucks to test how quickly the passage could be blocked in an emergency, while cyclists and pedestrians continued to move on the open part of the bridge.

The bridge was opened this year, but in the event of war, it takes on paramount importance. Chia Chung, a researcher at the National Institute for Defense Studies who observed the exercises, explained that if invading forces were to seize it and leave it open, they could move soldiers and large quantities of equipment at high speed from landing points in the south to the northern bank, and from there directly into the capital region.

"If the communist army manages to quickly take control of the Danjiang bridge during a war and leave it open, it will be able to move large forces and significant supplies quickly from the landing bases to the northern river bank, and from there directly into Taipei," he stated.

Although the exercise did not include a full closure of civilian traffic, it helped commanders collect vital data on the speed at which engineers could deploy defensive barriers. Simultaneously, as part of the broader training, other combat assets were documented, such as 'Cloud Leopard' armored vehicles camouflaged at major airports.

The exercises are taking place against the backdrop of threats from Beijing, which views Taiwan as its own territory and threatens to conquer it by force if necessary. The Taiwan government strongly rejects these sovereignty claims and continues to prepare its infrastructure for any scenario.