STORY: Taiwan's military began deploying armored trucks with one of its newest and most precise strike weapons on Saturday.
The vehicles with HIMARS - High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems - are taking part in intensifying drills meant to showcase the island's determination to resist any Chinese invasion.
This occurs as the Pentagon is urging Japan and Australia to clarify what role they would play if the U.S. and China went to war over Taiwan, according to a Financial Times report on Saturday.
Elbridge Colby, the U.S. under-secretary of defense for policy, has been pushing the matter during recent talks with defense officials of both countries, the report said, citing people familiar with the discussions.
According to the newspaper, the reported request caught Japan and Australia off guard, as the U.S. itself does not offer a blank check guarantee to defend Taiwan.
Colby said in an X post that the Department of Defense is focused on implementing the president's agenda which "includes by urging allies to step up their defense spending and other efforts related to our collective defense."
:: Released April 10, 2023
China views democratically governed Taiwan as its own and has intensified military pressure around the island over the last five years, staging a string of intense war games and daily naval and air force patrols around the territory.
Taiwan rejects China's sovereignty claims, with its president saying only Taiwan's people can decide their future.
