By Angie Teo and David Lague
TAICHUNG, Taiwan, June 9 (Reuters) - Taiwan's military simulated destroying an invading Chinese force in a coastal exercise on Tuesday, firing off rockets and artillery to stop an amphibious assault in what it described as a more realistic combat scenario with less preparation time.
China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has never renounced the use of force to bring the island under Beijing's control and its warplanes and warships operate
almost daily around the island.
The beaches and mud flats on Taiwan's west coast, directly facing China across the Taiwan Strait, are seen as the most likely location for an attempted landing by the Chinese military in the event of any invasion.
The drill was conducted simultaneously from eight positions across a 20 km (12 miles) stretch of coast around Taichung in central Taiwan.
Taiwan's government is modernising its armed forces, adding new and more mobile weapons but also making its training less predictable and more like the situation troops would face in actual combat.
Artillery commander Ong Yih-ming told reporters the drills were no longer about set-piece manoeuvres.
"What is different about this training compared with the past is that we are no longer conducting heavy artillery firing in a fixed, routine formation as before," he said.
"The timing for entering positions this time was based on realistic combat conditions. So I believe this training posed a considerable level of difficulty for our troops."
The drill used domestically developed, truck-mounted Thunderbolt-2000 rocket systems, U.S.-made Paladin howitzers, anti-tank missiles, artillery and mortars to establish a "kill zone" to stop an amphibious assault.
The military said this was the first time in seven years the Thunderbolt-2000 had conducted live-fire shooting in an operational area, a system developed for its long-range suppression capability and high mobility.
"What was different this time compared with the past is that previously, we would usually enter the position one week in advance and complete firing preparations," said rocket commander Liao Neng-cheng.
"This time, however, we arrived at the position only one day before and carried out the relevant position preparations. So our preparation time was relatively tight."
Taiwan's government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims, saying only the island's people can decide their future.
(Reporting by Angie Teo and David Lague; Additional reporting and writing by Ben Blanchard in Taipei; Editing by Kate Mayberry)
