A spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense said that in addition to a parade by regular ground forces, there will also be a display of paratroopers and some special forces from the Army and the Marines that have been trained to carry out special missions.

Among the new aircraft that will fly over the Presidential Office are F-16 fighters, Mirage 2000-5 fighters, AH-1W assault helicopters, OH-58D surveillance helicopters. F-16 and Mirage 2000-5 fighters have replaced F-5E and F-104 fighters to become the backbone of the Taiwan Air Force.

The Army will display three kinds of armed personnel vehicles that it recently acquired, including the Taiwan-made Cloud Leopard eight-wheeled vehicles and the Avenger vehicles equipped with machine guns and Stinger anti-aircraft missiles.

AAVP7s, the amphibious-landing vehicles purchased by the Marines in 2001, will also be on display during the parade.

Taiwan-made "Hsiung Feng" anti-ship missiles were first introduced to the public as anti-ship missiles in 1991, but they have been upgraded over the years to become ground-to-ground missiles. There are three versions of such missiles that can be launched from sea, air and ground on various platforms.

The spokesman confirmed that Taiwan test-launched a land-attack "Hsiung Feng 2E" missile at its Jiupeng Missile Test Range in Pingtung County in southern Taiwan earlier this year, but he declined to give any more details.

With a reported range of 1,000 kilometers and armed with a 400-kilogram warhead, the new missile will be able to strike as far north as Shanghai, according to reports.