Taiwan makes its first demonstration of HIMARS’ reach in China’s direction

Taiwan launched a U.S. rocket system in China’s direction for the first time during military exercises on Wednesday, according to news reports.

The Taiwanese military fired its High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems westward into the Taiwan Strait, the 110-mile-body of water that separates the island from China, according to reports by the Associated Press and Reuters news agency.

Although Taiwan has previously test-fired the HIMARS, obtained from the United States, off its east coast, this is the first live-fire demonstration into the strait, the reports said.

“Due to the current enemy threat, we will continue HIMARS training with unwavering determination to protect Taiwan as the nation’s strongest force,” army Sgt. Wang Ming-hui said, according to AP.

China’s ships and aircraft regularly drill around the island and test the limits of Taiwan’s military response. President Xi Jinping has made a goal of uniting Taiwan with China, which regards the self-governing democracy as a renegade province. Taiwan’s government rejects those claims.

The demonstration employed reduced-range practice rockets that didn’t fly very far from the island before falling into the water, AP reported.

However, HIMARS, with a range of 190 miles, could strike targets along the coast of ⁠Fujian province across the strait.

The exercise showed Taiwan’s ability to “shoot and scoot” with its HIMARS — to fire at its target and then move before it’s located by enemy radar, according to Reuters, which cited unnamed military officials.

“Our HIMARS demonstrated the solid combat capabilities of the unit and successfully completed this training,” company commander Ko Ming-pin said in that report.