Taiwan is demonstrating its missile capabilities during an uncommon visit to a sensitive test site

Taiwan demonstrated its missile prowess on Tuesday when, while visiting a sensitive test site located in a remote area of the island’s southeast coast, it fired a barrage of surface-to-air missiles in front of reporters.

Beijing wants to establish its claims to sovereignty, and Taiwan, which is democratically controlled and that China considers to be its own territory, has been complaining about increased military activities from Beijing. In response, Taipei has been bolstering its deterrent capabilities.

Taiwan’s military posture heavily relies on missiles, both homegrown and manufactured in the United States.

As morning dawned, a destroyer off the coast fired a RIM-66 Standard missile, and at the Jiupeng base in Taiwan’s Pingtung County, the military tested firing both American-made Patriot and Taiwan-made Sky Bow III missiles into the air.

“All the missiles that were fired today have smoothly hit their mark and have proven two points – the first being that the training of our soldiers is very solid, the other being that our weapons systems have been verified during this process of live firing missiles,” Sun Li-fang, a spokesperson for the Defense Ministry, said

He told reporters, “All in all, we have achieved our objectives,” during a rare visit to the base.

The National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology, a government-run weapons developer, tests new missiles near Jiupeng, including the Hsiung Feng, a longer-range missile intended to strike targets deep within China.

The government of Taiwan denies China’s territorial claims, stating that the people of the island have the last say over their destiny.