Taiwan's "Han Kuang 42" military exercise will kick off on Wednesday. Minister of National Defense Ku Li-hsiung, in a rare move, recently admitted that Taiwan's military cooperation and exchanges with the United States are "more extensive than everyone imagines." The "English teachers" the public sees are just a portion of it.
In recent years, U.S. personnel are often seen assisting and observing in various Taiwanese military drills, referred to by outsiders as "English teachers."
Last year, retired U.S. military personnel were also seen observing the Han Kuang exercise in Taiwan. However, officials have usually responded to related issues with "no comment" or "we do not confirm foreign military exchanges as a matter of policy."
In a recent joint media interview, Ku Li-hsiung said that Taiwan and the U.S. have long maintained close and diverse military exchanges, and the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command assists Taiwan at all levels in enhancing its defense operational capabilities. The "English teachers" that the public sees are just part of the situation; many exchanges are not necessarily visible to the outside, but he could not divulge much more detail. He also thanked the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command for its long-term role in maintaining peace and security in the Indo-Pacific and helping Taiwan strengthen its defense operational capabilities.
In the same interview, Director of Operations Planning Huang Wen-chi noted that military exchanges cannot be publicly detailed, but each year Taiwan's military sends personnel to the U.S. for training in various branches, specialties, and academies. The public can observe the progress in the military's realistic training by noting changes in how troops are drilled in recent years; these results cannot all be fully disclosed.
Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang stated that the Han Kuang exercise is improved every year, but it cannot be said that everything is learned from "English teachers." Rather, the military absorbs combat experience from various countries and adjusts according to its own preparation needs, including realistic training, decentralization, and distributed command and control. For example, this year's Han Kuang 42 exercise includes validating battlefield medical capacity and mobilizing production conversion, which are planned based on Taiwan's defense needs and shifting threats, not solely under U.S. guidance.