LOBBYING: The Institute of National Defense and Security is to hold talks with foreign think tanks on Taiwan’s defense principles and outlook
Taipei Times
Date: Nov 21, 2018
By: Aaron Tu and Jonathan Chin / Staff reporter, with staff writer
While military strength is the most important factor in the nation’s self-defense,
support from friendly nations remains a prerequisite for victory, Institute of National Defense and Security chief executive Lin Cheng-yi (林正義) said on Monday.
“Taiwan’s security is in our hands, but we do not have it 100 percent. We need the support of like-minded nations in the region,” Lin said while presenting a report to the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Ho Hsin-chun (何欣純) asked Lin to comment on the nation’s military preparedness, after citing the US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies as saying that Taiwan could fend off the Chinese People’s Liberation Army on its own.
Lin said he has over the past six months visited Chiashan Air Base in Hualien County several times and found the nation’s “Arizona-trained” F-16 pilots among the best in the world. [FULL STORY]