Symbolic imageTaiwan simulates an internet blackout as US trains its coastguard
Taiwan slowed internet speeds in northern and central cities this week, its first drill simulating an attack on its undersea cables. US instructors are separately training Taiwanese coastguards.
Air raid sirens emptied Taipei's streets on Thursday, 13 August, as video calls, streaming and mobile payments became difficult or impossible to use. The exercise ran on two days this week across 14 cities and counties, home to about 70% of the island's 23 million people, and authorities said the aim was to get residents preparing backup communications. Taipei calls its 16 international and 10 domestic submarine cables an "irreplaceable digital lifeline"; several have been damaged in incidents involving Chinese or China-linked vessels, which Taiwan's coast guard calls a "grey zone" strategy.
US instructors on the water
Taiwan's Coast Guard Administration said on Friday that its officers began a two-week course under US instructors on Monday, 10 August, covering small-boat operations and team coordination. The South China Morning Post links it to a sharp rise in China Coast Guard activity.
Tanker conversion for the PLA
Beijing confirmed that its Y-20B heavy transport can be converted into an aerial refuelling tanker, which the South China Morning Post says could extend PLA Air Force reach deeper into the western Pacific.
Other opinions
China's state-run Global Times did not cover the drill, running a commentary on three New York Times reports on Taiwan instead.