Taipei: Taiwan's military on Sunday conducted a nuclear, biological, and chemical (NBC) decontamination drill in eastern Taiwan as part of the ongoing live-fire segment of the country's annual Han Kuang military exercises. The drill, which was held in Hualien County, mobilized armored vehicles and military personnel, aiming to test the armed forces' response to a simulated chemical weapons attack by a group of Chinese spies in Taiwan.

According to Focus Taiwan, the scenario involved spies releasing toxic gases around multiple military positions in Hualien, intending to delay troops in eastern Taiwan from reinforcing forces defending the northern part of the island. A CNA reporter, embedded with the military, witnessed firsthand the opening of a temporary decontamination station by troops from the Chemical Group within 30 minutes of receiving the order.

Chemical Group soldiers wore Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear respirators while rigorously disinfecting tanks and armored vehicles according to designated procedures. The decontamination process involved identifying contaminated areas and detecting toxic substances before removing hazardous materials with hot water followed by decontamination powder.

Vehicles were required to drive through a decontamination pit filled with cleansing materials to remove toxic agents from their undersides. Before allowing the armored vehicles to leave, soldiers used detection papers and instruments to ensure they no longer contained contaminated materials, with the process taking eight to 10 minutes per vehicle.

The annual Han Kuang exercises, Taiwan's largest-scale war games since 1984, aim to test the country's combat readiness in the face of a possible Chinese invasion. These large-scale exercises are conducted in two stages, with this year's tabletop war games having taken place from April 11 to 24, and the live-fire portion running from August 5 to 14.