To mark the annual Han Kuang military exercises, which are taking place from 5 to 14 August, Taiwan will carry out, in conjunction with civilian forces, an exercise to relocate the country's arms factories, as well as another to convert civilian factories into military production facilities. This follows the military's assessment that, in the event of a full-scale invasion by the People's Republic of China, the Chinese military would attempt to cut off ports, land routes, and factories to choke off supply lines.
According to Major General Lu Wen-yuan, head of the Joint Operations Division, speaking at a press conference (via Reuters), the exercises are based on the assumption that "Chinese forces are using routine annual joint military exercises as a cover for large-scale amphibious landing drills, thereby concealing their plans to attack Taiwan whilst finalising preparations for the assault."
The exercises come as Taiwan reports a sharp increase in Chinese coastguard activity around the island, fuelling concerns in Taipei. At the same time, the United States issued a statement described by analysts as "unusual", highlighting the cooperation between the US Coast Guard and the Taiwanese Coast Guard.