TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The annual Han Kuang military drills originally scheduled for next month will be postponed until the second half of the year due to the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, the Ministry of National Defense announced Tuesday (March 3).
The military claimed the delay does not create a precedent, as a similar situation occurred in 2003 when SARS led to the postponement of exercises from May to September, Yahoo reported. While the military did not reveal a precise timetable for this year’s event, a spokesman mentioned the second half of 2020 as the general date.
The 36th edition of the Han Kuang drills, Taiwan’s most important war games, will include both simulations and live maneuvers.
Despite the coronavirus outbreak, the Navy will still send ships on an international tour, though they will not dock in areas where there have been many infections, the spokesman said.
