Taiwan Examines Israel-Hamas Conflict, Searching for Insight
Taiwanese National Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng speaks at an Oct. 12 briefing. Photo: Reuters/Carlos Garcia Rawlins
Countries all around the world are watching the war between Israel and Hamas — and Taiwan is no exception.
At a Thursday briefing, National Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng announced the establishment of a task force in order for Taiwan to evaluate the situation in the Middle East and discover how such a conflict could be averted in the future. The announcement comes as Taiwan faces increasingly aggressive posturing from China, which in recent years has ramped up its rhetoric regarding the self-governed island it claims as its own. The superpower has also held two major sets of war games since August 2022 in the waters around Taiwan, combined with scores of military sorties through its airspace.
The Middle Eastern conflict began with attacks on Israel by the Palestine-based militant group Hamas, which have so far resulted in 1300 deaths. The strike was launched from Gaza, a narrow strip of territory blockaded since Hamas took control in 2007. In response, Israel has pounded the city with thousands of airstrikes, killing over 2,000 people as of Oct. 7. It has warned Palestinians in the territory to prepare for an imminent ground invasion as well.
Though any conflict surrounding Taiwan would differ significantly from that in Gaza and Israel, Chiu expressed his belief that Taiwan must nonetheless increase its ability to predict threats, telling journalists, “The initial (lesson) is that intelligence work is very important. With intelligence, many countermeasures can be made. A war can even be avoided.” He specifically noted the unexpectedness of Hamas’ attack as an additional prompter for the move, and added that Taiwan continues to keep a close eye on its own situation as well.
The task force comes as an extension of Taiwan’s focus on defense, which has only increased in the past few years. As China’s bellicosity has grown, the island has continued building up its military, having launched its first domestically-built submarine for testing on September 28. Furthermore, Israel’s recent call-up of 300,000 reservists has drawn attention to Taiwan’s own capacity. Though Taiwan possesses nearly the same quantity of reservists, some military analysts have wondered how quickly they could be called up in full in the event of a Chinese attack. When asked, Chiu did not provide a clear answer.
Taiwanese service members participate in a military drill. Photo: AP News/Chiang Ying-ying
Concerns also have surfaced regarding the United States, Taiwan’s foremost international backer and predominant arms supplier, which has been quick to pledge its support for Israel. While the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has only begun, many worry that China will see an opportunity to attack Taiwan, betting that a distracted US will lack the ability or willpower to intervene. Similar beliefs were aired following the onset of the Russo-Ukrainian War in February 2022, as Taiwan lost priority in American arms shipments. Now, the island may have dropped to third place or worse.
US President Joe Biden has in fact told Congress that he hopes to combine aid for Taiwan with an imminent request for Ukraine and Israeli funding, providing some hope. But given that the Taiwanese government is even now waiting on over $18 billion USD in already-contracted American equipment, and repeated analyses showing shortages of key US munitions, the new conflict has led to an increased sense of urgency in Taiwan’s domestic military growth.
On Thursday, the same day as the briefing, China announced it had sent fighter jets across the Taiwan strait to warn US planes, and the following legislative hearing in Taiwan included calls to better spread information about air raid stations. Despite the increasing levels of danger, Chiu was sure to assert that Taiwan should “make preparations for war, it should not court war.” He expressed confidence in the military’s “tireless” work in the effort to prevent war.