video transcript

ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION) STORY: Taiwan conducts military drills ahead of the lunar new year with demonstrations from the navy, army and air force on Tuesday and Wednesday. At sea near the Zuoying Harbor Naval Base in Kaohsiung, a two-hour long drill simulated a threat of submarine attack. The navy positioned enemy submarines underwater, guided S70C anti-submarine helicopters to confirm the submarine's position with a dipping sonar, and simulated a torpedo attack to force enemy submarines ashore. In Hualien, 401 Wing Air Force, one of the closest defense unit's to the disputed Diaoyu Islands, demonstrated emergency take off, and other F-16 performances. The army simulated an enemy raid at the Hualien Airport, and dispatched ten M60A3 chariots during the drill. The U.S. is upgrading Taiwan's 145 existing F-16A/B fighters, and Taipei is still seeking to purchase advanced F-16C/D models, and submarines. China deems self-ruled Taiwan a breakaway province subject to a return to the fold, by force if necessary. The United States is committed under a 1979 law to supply Taiwan the arms it needs to maintain a "sufficient self-defense capability."