In the stillness of a small village on the outskirts of this central Taiwanese city, two CM-34 \u201cClouded Leopard\u201d armored vehicles rumbled down narrow country lanes, unloading soldiers tasked with countering a simulated Chinese landing force pushing inland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On the other side of town, two CM-11 \u201cBrave Tiger\u201d battle tanks concealed behind a community center fired mock rounds at a rice paddy, the blasts echoing through the village.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In years past, Taiwan\u2019s annual Han Kuang exercises have been staged on military bases, along desolate coastlines and generally out of sight for the average resident of Taiwan, a democratically self-governed island\u00a0at the center of regional tensions<\/a>\u00a0in the Asia-Pacific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This year, the drills feel like something else entirely: They are twice as long, larger than ever in scale and far more visible in everyday life, spilling into the parking area outside a\u00a0Costco<\/a>, onto subway cars zipping underneath the capital city of Taipei and into viral social-media posts. In one case, a tank inadvertently sideswiped a passing car. In another, several tanks ended up outside the American big-box retailer\u2019s store in the southern city of Tainan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Read it all<\/a>.<\/p> No longer does Taiwan conduct annual Han Kuang exercises in a secluded area for a short time. Now, it's out in the open–even in the parking lot of Costco!–and goes for longer. The island's stress is building because China's threats are rising.https:\/\/t.co\/43vnqU9grl<\/a><\/p>— Derek J. Grossman (@DerekJGrossman) July 17, 2025<\/a><\/blockquote>