Taiwan’s military has live-streamed live-fire drills featuring its new M1A2T Abrams tanks in a show of force aimed at boosting public morale and highlighting combat readiness amid rising tensions with Beijing.
The high-profile display on Thursday came just as mainland China ramped up its own military signalling across the Taiwan Strait.
State broadcaster CCTV aired back-to-back footage of amphibious assault and reconnaissance drills conducted by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in the coastal province of Fujian, directly across the strait from Taiwan.
The timing of the parallel manoeuvres underscored the escalating rivalry, with both sides flexing their military muscles and engaging in psychological signalling.
The firepower demonstration in Taiwan on Thursday marked the official debut of the US-made tanks – touted as the world’s most powerful – after more than six months of integration and training.
Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te oversaw the drills at a new army tank training ground in Hsinchu in northern Taiwan. He praised both the tank crews and the weapon system’s battlefield capabilities.
