Taiwan Slows Mobile Internet to Text-Only Speed in War Drill

For 30 minutes on Thursday, mobile internet users in Taipei and six other cities and localities across Taiwan experienced a dramatic slowdown, with speeds capped at 256 Kbps — enough for text messages but little else. The disruption was a deliberate part of the final phase of the island's annual Han Kuang exercises, which began last week and are designed to simulate a response to a potential Chinese military invasion.

Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te apologized for the inconvenience, asking for public understanding and support, and stressing that the drill was necessary. The slowdown is part of a broader effort to make the exercises more realistic and disruptive, moving beyond the largely unnoticed urban drills of previous years.

This year's exercises have placed a greater emphasis on integrating civilians and coordinating with local governments. In Taipei, a metro station's gates were shut for an air raid simulation, holding passengers until the drill concluded. Lai also visited a hospital as it practiced relocating critical operations to underground facilities.

The increased intensity of the drills comes amid heightened tensions with China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory. Beijing continues to send military aircraft and naval vessels near the island on a daily basis, and periodically conducts large-scale military exercises. Taiwan's Defense Ministry reported that between Wednesday and Thursday morning, 18 Chinese warplanes and 11 navy ships were operating around the island.