Taiwan has fired dozens of rockets from American-made missile launchers in China’s direction for the first time, in a two-day drill that signals the island’s determination to repel a potential invasion.
The High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (Himars) were launched on Wednesday from a 12-mile stretch of “red beaches” near the central city of Taichung – coastal areas considered the most likely landing spots for a Chinese amphibious assault. The US-supplied launchers, which have been test-fired before but only into the Pacific Ocean from Taiwan’s southeastern coast, were now aimed west across the narrow Taiwan Strait.
“Taiwan fires US-made Himars missiles towards China for first time in drill simulating invasion defence.”
“Due to the current enemy threat, we will continue HIMARS training with unwavering determination to protect Taiwan as the nation’s strongest force,” army Sgt. Wang Ming-hui said.
The exercise simulated an enemy amphibious force attempting to invade the central region, according to a statement from Taiwan’s ministry of national defence, which said it aimed to “enhance the effectiveness of combat-oriented training, enabling officers and men to recognise that ‘everywhere is a battlefield, and training is constant’.”
Thirty-two rockets were fired, but with a reduced range of approximately nine miles – though Taiwan possesses longer-range munitions capable of hitting China. Alongside the Himars, the military also used its domestically produced Thunderbolt-2000 rocket system, US-made Paladin howitzers and anti-tank guided missiles.
The decision to test the Himars from the west coast was “symbolically significant”, said William Yang, a senior analyst for north-east Asia at the Crisis Group. “This is sending a very strong, concurrent signal to Beijing about Taiwan’s determination, and also potential progress that it is making in enhancing its strike capability towards China.”
The Himars system is a cornerstone of Taiwan’s “asymmetric” or “porcupine” strategy: using mobile, lower-cost systems to deny China’s much larger forces. It has been one of the most effective assets for Ukraine in its defence against Russia. Taiwan received its first batch of 11 Himars in late 2024 and expects another 18 by the end of the year; the US approved an additional 82 in December as part of a historic $11bn arms package.
Yang noted the timing of the drills – less than a month after Donald Trump met Xi Jinping in China and referred to Taiwan as a “negotiating chip” – was unlikely to be a coincidence.