《TAIPEI TIMES》 M1A2T tanks to join southern Lien Yung drills

The M1A2T Abram tank was photographed at the Hsinchu County military base on October 31 last year.

The U.S.-made M1A2T Abram tank will participate in large-scale military exercises for the second time in the Lian Yong exercise starting next month, military sources revealed yesterday.

The Army's 584th Armored Brigade, which operates the U.S.-made tanks, has transported the tanks to a joint combat training base in Pingtung County to prepare for the exercises from late next month through December.

During the month-long joint military exercises in the South, the tank crews will test their combat coordination capabilities, the sources said, asking not to be named.

The first time the M1A2T Abram tank participated in a large-scale military exercise in Taiwan was during the Han Kuang exercise in August.

The Taiwan-wide Han Kuang exercise, which includes live fire, is Taiwan's largest military exercise, while Exercise Lian Yong is the second largest.

The joint exercise was held in southern Taiwan and was designed to test the coordination capabilities of Taiwan's army, navy and air force in jointly defending against enemy invasion.

Soldiers who have completed their compulsory service this year will also participate in the joint exercise, sources said.

Currently, only volunteer soldiers operate the M1A2T Abram tank, said Su Ziyun, director of the Defense Strategy and Resources Division of the National Defense Security Research Institute.

However, it is important for conscripts to participate in large-scale live-fire exercises like Exercise Lian Yong to gain more advanced training, Su Ziyun added.

According to an agreement approved by Washington in 2019, Taiwan purchased 108 M1A2T Abram tanks from the United States at a total cost of approximately US$1.45 billion.

Of these 108 tanks, 38 were delivered to the Army's 584th Armored Brigade at the end of October last year, 42 were delivered in April, and the remaining 28 are still in the testing and preparation stage for service.

News source: TAIPEI TIMES