TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Army’s Huadong Defense Command, responsible for protecting Hualien and Taitung, will conduct live-fire exercises next month, according to the Fisheries Agency.

The exercise will run from March 24-27 from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. each day near the mouth of the Taimali River in Taitung County. The designated live-fire area has a minimum radius of 11 nautical miles and a maximum projectile altitude of 18,000 feet. The drills are intended to confirm command skills, firepower coordination, and airspace and maritime control measures.

During the exercise, liaison officers will be stationed at control towers and assigned to Coast Guard units to adjust operations as needed to minimize the impact on civil aviation and maritime shipping.

The Huadong Defense Command resumed live-fire training at the end of last year. China deployed a Type 075 amphibious assault ship task group to waters off eastern Taiwan during its “Justice Mission–2025” exercise in December, Liberty Times reported. Analysts interpreted the maneuvers as aimed at testing cross-sea force projection and joint amphibious landing capabilities, simulating a multi-domain assault launched from Taiwan’s eastern flank.

Due to site limitations and mission adjustments, Taiwan’s east coast exercises were previously suspended for over three decades. Their restoration as a regular practice is an important step in strengthening eastern Taiwan’s defense resilience, per Liberty Times.