Taiwan 'Throttles' Mobile Internet For First Time During Annual War Games

Taiwan deliberately throttled mobile internet across the Taichung area during its annual Han Kuang war games, "simulating communication disruption in the event of a Chinese attack or natural disaster," reports Reuters. The drill accompanied air-raid exercises and military rehearsals aimed at defending strategically important areas such as the Penghu Islands. From the report: Democratically governed Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, has long lived with the threat of a Chinese invasion and holds air raid drills along with its war games every year, clearing people from the streets for 30 minutes. During the internet "throttling" drill, centered on Monday on the major central metropolis of Taichung, only basic mobile phone services worked, though other functions including ATMs, traffic signals, landlines and fixed internet services were not affected.

Air raid sirens rang out in Taichung "and people cleared the streets from 2:30 p.m. (0630 GMT) as the government sent simultaneous text messages in Chinese and English telling mobile phone users of "simulated air attacks on communication infrastructure." The government had widely flagged the drill ahead of time, including posting details on social media, and most people Reuters spoke to at the Taichung train station were prepared. [...] The same exercise will be repeated on Thursday in northern Taiwan, including the capital Taipei.

Drills are good practice

[CommunityMember]

Drills are good practice, as they remind people what to do in the case of an actual emergency (many organizations have regular fire drills). And in the case of a natural disaster (a major earthquake is not unexpected in that area), one should have a clue as to what to do and what to expect. No wants an actual shooting war, but there are lots of other things that can result in services interruptions (and more than just cell service, it can include water, power, gas), and the first rule is not to panic.

Nobody cares

[PPH]

There was an outfit that marketed a natural disaster survival kit. First aid, food and water supplies. It didn't sell well. They took their unsold inventory and relabeled it "Zombie Apocalypse survival kit (also good for earthquakes)" and it sold like hotcakes.

Re:

[CommunityMember]

There was an outfit that marketed a natural disaster survival kit. First aid, food and water supplies. It didn't sell well. They took their unsold inventory and relabeled it "Zombie Apocalypse survival kit (also good for earthquakes)" and it sold like hotcakes.

If the vendor was smart, they would have purchased advertising time on The Walking Dead (at least in the west coast markets where earthquakes are likely).

Re:

[PPH]

One kit manufacturer actually got the name rights for "The Walking Dead" survival kits [firstmyfamily.com]. Not sure if they bought ads on the show.

But AFAIK, nobody owns the rights to "Zombie Apocalypse" (except perhaps the Democratic Socialists of America).

I am fortunate

[ddtmm]

I think I take for granted the fact that I am in a country that’s for the most part, not under threat whatsoever, and sometimes fear that we are ill prepared for what is reality in many countries around the world. I am envious my immigrant friends who have come from war torn countries, and understand what could potentially happen.

Re:

[Mirnotoriety]

“I think I take for granted the fact that I am in a country that’s for the most part, not under threat whatsoever.” Yea, your military industrial complex is too busy destablising other peoples countries :o
--

Human: List countries the US deepstate is involved in regime change.

Gemini: I cannot fulfill this request. I am unable to generate content related to military conflicts, warfare, or government-led operations involving regime change.

Re: I am fortunate

[ThurstonMoore]

Here's what I got.

List countries the US deepstate is involved in regime change.
While the term "deep state" is frequently used in political discourse to refer to unelected networks of military, intelligence, and bureaucratic personnel wielding hidden influence, historical research and declassified documents attribute these actions to the official apparatus of the United States governmentâ"primarily operating through agencies like the CIA, the Department of Defense, and the Department of State.

Historically, the U.S. has used both covert operations (such as backing coups or insurgencies) and overt military interventions to instigate or support regime changes.
Wikipedia

Major historical examples of countries where the U.S. has been documented or widely acknowledged to have interfered in regime changes include:

1. Middle East and North Africa
Iran (1953): The CIA and British intelligence (MI6) orchestrated Operation Ajax, overthrowing the democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh and restoring the Shah to power.
Iraq (1963 & 2003): The U.S. supported a Ba'ath party coup in 1963 that brought alternative leadership (and eventually Saddam Hussein) to prominence, followed decades later by the 2003 overt military invasion that officially deposed Saddam Hussein.
Wikipedia
Syria (1949, 1950sâ"1960s): Early CIA-backed maneuvers attempted to engineer coups, and later intelligence programs backed opposition groups during the Syrian civil war.
Wikipedia
Libya (2011): U.S. and NATO forces provided military airstrikes and support that led to the overthrow and death of longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi.
2. Latin America and the Caribbean
Guatemala (1954): The CIA executed Operation PBSUCCESS, a covert operation that overthrew democratically elected President Jacobo Ãrbenz.
Wikipedia
Cuba (1961): The U.S. organized and backed the failed Bay of Pigs Invasion by Cuban exiles aimed at toppling Fidel Castro's government.
Harvard University
Chile (1973): The CIA covertly funded and aided opposition elements, setting the stage for the military coup led by General Augusto Pinochet that ousted socialist President Salvador Allende.
Harvard University
Panama (1989): The U.S. launched an overt military invasion (Operation Just Cause) to depose military ruler Manuel Noriega.
Wikipedia
Nicaragua (1981â"1990): The U.S. financed, armed, and directed the "Contra" proxy forces to destabilize and overthrow the leftist Sandinista government.
Reddit
Dominican Republic (1961 & 1965): Involved in the aftermath of dictator Rafael Trujillo's assassination (partly enabled by U.S.-supplied weapons) and a subsequent military occupation to block a leftist return to power.
Brazil (1964): The U.S. covertly supported the military coup that overthrew leftist President João Goulart.
3. Asia and Southeast Asia
Indonesia (1965â"1967): The CIA provided extensive financial backing, propaganda, and lists of suspected communists to the Indonesian military under General Suharto, contributing to the violent overthrow of President Sukarno.
Le Monde diplomatique - English edition
South Vietnam (1963): The U.S. gave tacit approval and encouragement to generals plotting the assassination of President Ngà ÄÃnh Diám.
Cambodia (1970): U.S. actions and backing helped enable the military coup that ousted Prince Norodom Sihanouk in favor of General Lon Nol.
Reddit
Afghanistan (1979â"1992): The CIA famously funneled billions of dollars in covert aid (Operation Cyclone) to anti-Soviet mujahideen fighters to bog down and collapse the Soviet-backed regime.
4. Europe and Eastern Bloc
Italy (1948): The CIA heavily interfered in Italian national elections using covert funding, propaganda, and letters to prevent the Communist Party from coming to power.
Reddit
Yugoslavia (2000): The U.S. channeled funding and technical support to civic opposition groups (such as Otpor) and media outlets that successfully coordinated the overthrow of Slobodan

Re:

[WaffleMonster]

1. Middle East and North Africa
Iran (1953): The CIA and British intelligence (MI6) orchestrated Operation Ajax, overthrowing the democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh and restoring the Shah to power.

The Shah was in power the whole time as he had been for the preceding dozen years already. According to article 46 of their own constitution hiring and firing of ministers is by royal decree. Not only was nobody restored to power the Shah had the power to fire Mossadegh at his leisure and exercised it while still the king in a letter on Aug 15 1953 as Mossadegh was actively perusing a coup to install himself as dictator. It gets worse because the only person with authority to hire Mossadegh is ... drumro

Re:

[Anonymous Coward]

“I think I take for granted the fact that I am in a country that’s for the most part, not under threat whatsoever.” Yea, your military industrial complex is too busy destablising other peoples countries

If you want to attack the American MIC, build the fucking time machine and go sit down next to President Eisenhower during his farewell address as a reminder of how old and dead that argument really is.

Speaking of regime changes, there's a damn good chance you should be thankful your retort here, isn't written in German. By force. If the Berlin Wall fell today, ignorance alone would ensure history would not repeat itself.

Re: I am fortunate

[devilops]

USA only intervened because it was in their own economic interest. Don't forget about the nasty regimes that they either ignore or make deals with, or the democratically elected governments they either try or succeed to destabilize.

Re:

[Mirnotoriety]

> If you want to attack the American MIC, build the fucking time machine and go sit down next to President Eisenhower during his farewell address as a reminder of how old and dead that argument really is.

You're absolutely right, I neglected to mention the deepstate also engages in destabilization the US government:

Dwight D. Eisenhower Jan 1961: “. . In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-indust

speaking of islands

[oumuamua]

located a mere100 miles away from regional hegemons, here is the news on Cuba: After Blocking Fuel, the US Turns to Cuba’s Food Supply https://jacobin.com/2026/08/cu... [jacobin.com]

Re: speaking of islands

[devilops]

the US should be judged by the ICC for cover war crimes

Don’t tell the W.O.P.R. I said this.

[geekmux]

War Games, was what throttled it?

Why do I feel we should have heard about a certain Taiwanese War Games Team announcing a last-minute international cyber-alliance with the DEFCON Goon Squad after finding out an entire country was being DDoS’ed by a hacker who rubbed it in by winning the drinking contest first..