Kaohsiung [Taiwan], May 17 (ANI): The President of Taiwan, Lai Ching-te, visited the Army Engineer Training Centre and the Navy Anti-Submarine Aviation Command in Kaohsiung and expressed gratitude to members of the armed forces for their dedication.

The details of his visit were shared in a post on X.

'Today, President @ChingteLai visited the Army Engineer Training Center and the Navy Anti-Submarine Aviation Command in Kaohsiung. He expressed gratitude to the service members for their steadfast dedication to guarding the frontlines day and night', the post on X said.

https://x.com/MoNDefense/status/1923308508847505428

Notably, his visit comes after Taiwan had conducted a series of test firing of several Land Sword II and HIMARS system in recent times.

To bolster air defence preparedness, Taiwan conducted the live-fire debut of Land Sword II.

As per the MND, Land Sword II possesses the capability of countering varied aerial threats, thereby significantly enhancing the protection of the force.

'Land Sword II makes its live fire debut. This SAM system is capable of countering diverse aerial threats and significantly enhances force protection for #ROCArmy,' MND wrote on X on Tuesday.

This development follows after Taiwan had conducted its first live-firing of the American-supplied high mobility artillery rocket system (HIMARS) at a base in Pingtung County on Monday, as reported by Focus Taiwan.

Most recently, Taipei Times reported that Taiwan is holding talks with 'certain countries' to conduct a joint humanitarian exercise in the Taiwan Strait as a response to China's increasing use of 'gray zone' tactics and legal warfare, Coast Guard Administration (CGA) Deputy Director General Hsieh Ching-chin said on Thursday.

The Taiwan-China issue is a complex and longstanding geopolitical conflict centred on Taiwan's sovereignty. Taiwan, officially known as the Republic of China (ROC), operates its own government, military, and economy, functioning as a de facto independent state.

However, China considers Taiwan a breakaway province and insists on the 'One China' policy, which asserts that there is only one China, with Beijing as its capital.

This has fuelled decades of tension, especially since the Chinese Civil War (1945-1949), when the ROC government retreated to Taiwan after the Communist Party, led by Mao Zedong, took control of mainland China.

Beijing has consistently expressed its goal of reunification with Taiwan, using diplomatic, economic, and military pressure to isolate Taiwan internationally. (ANI)