Taiwan’s military has released a war survival handbook for civilians as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine focuses attention on how the island should respond to pressure from China.
China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control, and has stepped up military activities nearby in the past two years, to press it into accepting its sovereignty claims.
Taiwan’s guide sets out how to find bomb shelters via smartphone apps, water and food supplies, as well as tips for preparing emergency first aid kits.
It uses comic strips and pictures with tips to survive a military attack, such as how to distinguish air raid sirens and ways to shelter from missiles.
“(We) are providing information on how citizens should react in a military crisis and possible disasters to come,” Liu Tai-yi, an official of the ministry’s All-out Defence Mobilisation unit, told an online news conference.
That would enable safety preparedness and help people to survive, he said, adding that it would be further updated with localised information on the sites of shelters, hospitals and shops for daily needs.
Planning for the handbook predates the war in Ukraine, and Taiwan has not reported any sign of an imminent invasion, but the island nation has raised its alert level in recent weeks.
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President Tsai Ing-wen has vowed repeatedly to defend the country and is overseeing a broad modernisation programme to make its forces more mobile and harder to attack.
Besides the plans unveiled last year to reform training for reserve forces, the government is looking to extend compulsory military service beyond four months.
