Taiwan considers foreign legion of fighters to counter China

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Politicians and security experts are discussing how to boost the number of troops, and the formation of a "foreign legion" is one of several potential options being looked at.

“[Richard Chen] stated that it could be modelled on a US system, whereby foreign individuals could serve for two years and then be granted citizenship; however, he noted that the formal consultation process has yet to commence.”

The island should pay more for American protection,

An alternative to increasing military spending to recruit more military personnel – albeit one not yet being formally proposed by the government – is, as Alexander Huang, a professor at Tamkang University in Taipei, puts it, "introducing migrants and creating a kind of foreign legion".

Data from the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) Military Balance 2022 report reveals that the island nation's 169,000-strong active military personnel are supported by a reserve force of approximately 1.66 million.

In comparison, it has more than 2 million active soldiers and 500,000 reservists.

The country is being strengthened by increasing its civil protection measures.

Last year, Taiwan increased the length of its compulsory military service period from four months to a year.

Taiwan's declining birth rate, one of the lowest globally, is predicted to lead to a reduction in the number of conscripts available in the years to come.

However, the island is also home to almost 1 million foreign residents, primarily from south-east Asia, as revealed by official statistics.

China has never foregone the option of using force to take control of it. Beijing regularly threatens Taipei by sending warships and military jets into its airspace and engaging in other ambiguous tactics, which repeatedly probe the island’s defences but halt short of open confrontation.

This week, the Taiwanese coastguard has detained a Chinese vessel suspected of causing damage to an undersea internet cable in the waters off the north-east coast of the island.

s by Chinese vessels.

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