Taiwan extends mandatory military service to 1 year from 4 months starting 2024

Taiwan will extend compulsory military service to one year from four months in 2024 due to the rising threat the democratically governed island faces from its giant neighbour China, President Tsai Ing-wen announced on Tuesday.

The move, which had been well-flagged, comes as China ramps up military, diplomatic and economic pressure on Taiwan to assert its sovereignty claims, including almost daily Chinese air force missions near the island over the past three years.

The current military system, including training reservists, is inefficient and insufficient to cope with China's rising military threat, especially if it launched a rapid attack on the island, Tsai told a news conference announcing the decision to extend the conscription period, which she described as "incredibly difficult."

Taipei, which rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims to Taiwan, reported the largest-ever Chinese air force incursion into the island's air defence identification zone on Monday, with 43 Chinese planes crossing an unofficial buffer between the two sides.

For more info, please go to https://globalnews.ca/news/9373512/china-taiwan-air-zone-incursion/

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