TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Taiwan Army’s Penghu Defense Command carried out its monthly Chen Chiang live-fire exercise on the outlying island to ensure the effectiveness of troops’ combat training on Wednesday (Nov. 16).

The exercise kicked off early Wednesday morning, with soldiers using 105 mm and 155 mm howitzers, 120 mm mortars, M2 and T74 machine guns, and M60A3 tanks, CNA reported. Soldiers coordinated suppressive fire and changed positions during the drills.

The commander of the Penghu Defense Command’s armored infantry battalion, surnamed Cheng, said that the drill draws from soldiers’ practical training to counter China’s military threat and demonstrates the will of the servicemembers to not give up even an inch of ground.

The soldiers stationed in Penghu are dedicated to protecting their homeland, Cheng said.

Last month's Chen Chiang exercise simulated Chinese military aircraft and ships making their way toward Penghu after carrying out operations near the main island of Taiwan. A number of M60A3 tanks, CM21 armored personnel carriers, 155 mm howitzers, and 105 mm howitzers were dispatched to the coast of the outer lying island, as well as 120mm and 81mm mortars and machine guns.