Taiwan studies Israeli military success against Iran amid Chinese threats

Located at the opposite ends of Asia, Taiwan and Israel are prosperous tech-focused democracies that both face serious security threats to their respective existence. Israel’s recent military success against Iran has therefore become a relevant case study for Taiwan as the island nation conducted this week its largest-ever military exercise.

Taiwan mobilized approximately 22,000 reservists and simulated responses to various threats, including missile and cyber-attacks from its numerically superior neighbor, China. While the Iranian ayatollah regime openly calls for the Jewish state’s destruction, the Chinese regime has vowed to end Taiwan’s independence and incorporate it into mainland China. 

Abby Ya-Ping Lee, Taiwan’s diplomatic representative in Israel, believes that Israel’s Operation Rising Lion against the numerically superior Iran offers valuable lessons for Taiwan as it defends itself against the Chinese superpower. 

“I have been sharing all the firsthand information on the ground here back to Taiwan. There are a lot of critical and valuable lessons for Taiwan to learn from the 12-day war,” Lee said in an interview with The Jerusalem Post. 

“Taiwan has been living under hybrid threats from China for decades, and in recent years, Beijing has stepped up the coercion and intimidation to incorporate Taiwan by force. So there is a sense of urgency for everyone in Taiwan to strengthen our defense capabilities and the whole of societal resilience,” she assessed. 

Lee emphasized that Taiwan will be studying Israel’s intelligence capabilities. 

“What did we learn from the Israel-Iran war? Firstly, the importance of intelligence,” the envoy argued.

“I know that Israel’s success in Operation Rising Lion was rooted in your advanced intelligence capability, which enabled Israel to degrade Iranian command and control and dismantle missile capabilities in advance. Taiwan will have to continue to fortify the intelligence networks, our cyber capability, and deepen our cooperation with allies and partners to detect and prevent hostile and surprise actions,” Lee explained.

While the Israeli Air Force is both quantitatively and qualitatively far stronger than its Iranian counterpart, Taiwan is facing an uphill battle against a vastly more powerful Chinese military. 

“Compared to the Chinese military, Taiwan cannot match its assets,” Lee admitted. The Taiwanese diplomat, therefore, assessed that it will need to focus on boosting its defensive capabilities against potential Chinese attempts to invade the island nation. 

“We must focus on strengthening our air defense missile interception capabilities. This includes accelerating a symmetric defense transformation from acquired, smart, and efficient anti-drone and antimissile systems to modernize our economy to be more decentralized, nimble, and adaptive to different contingencies.”

“We understand that we must be committed to defending ourselves so that others can come to assist us,” Lee continued. “But Taiwan alone is not enough. This is the fundamental defense doctrine of Taiwan, and I believe it is also reflected in Israel’s current situation."

Lee stressed the importance for Israel and Taiwan to maintain strong ties with Washington and other Western allies. 

“We saw swift and decisive intervention by the US and Western allies, demonstrating the value of a credible alliance and joint operational plan,” she explained. “The US’s rapid deployment also sent a reassuring signal to its allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific region. For Taiwan, we are very grateful that the US provides military aid in the form of foreign military financing."

The Taiwanese envoy is also impressed with the Israeli society’s resilience after more than 21 months of war with Iran and its terrorist proxies Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis. 

“The resilience of Israeli society is inspirational to us,” Lee said. “The community supports clear civil defense protocols, as we see in the home front commands, timelines, and the population’s preparedness for missile attacks. The mamad (safe room) is part of your building code requirement."

Taiwan has expressed strong support for Israel since the Hamas-led attacks on Oct. 7, 2023. Merely a few weeks after the Hamas massacre of 1,200 Israelis and kidnapping of 251 people from southern Israel, the Taiwanese embassy in Israel donated $70,000 to Israeli soldiers and Israeli families in need through the local non-profit organization, Pitchon-Lev.

"I take immense pride in Taiwan's swift expression of solidarity and condolences for the tragic loss of life in Israel. Today, on behalf of the Taiwanese people and government, I am honored to announce our partnership with Pitchon-Lev. It exemplifies Taiwan's commitment to assisting those in need, regardless of their background, beliefs, or gender," Lee stated.