The number of Chinese missiles targeted at Taiwan is likely to reach 1,800 next year, despite improving ties between the former arch-rivals, Taiwanese media said Friday.
I assume not all are precision weapons. Still, even if all of them are, they are not a decisive weapon alone. Chinese aircraft would need to be part of the offensive to really cripple the Taiwanese.
Remember that in the first 5 days of NATO's offensive against Libya's far weaker air defenses and air force assets, NATO fired 168 precision cruise missiles along with 222 strike sorties. Assuming that each plane sortie carried 4 precision weapons, we're talking only a little more than a thousand hits on Libyan targets. That was clearly survivable and Taiwan could fight through a Chinese missile barrage.
Or consider the Iraq War invasion:
The US Forces flew 37,000 missions during OIF, dropping 23,000 precision guided weapons (over 66% of the total ordnance dropped) and launching 750 cruise missiles.
So even close to 24,000 US precision weapons dropped mainly over the course of 3 or 4 weeks--I assume--until conventional Iraqi resistance collapsed did not prevent the Iraqis from deploying ground units and resisting our invasion.
The point is that Taiwan should not tremble and panic in the face of these weapons. Nor should Americans throw up our hands at the thought of trying to defend Taiwan from a Chinese attack. China will need far more than these missiles to inflict deep wounds and will face threats of their own to getting ashore on Taiwan for the killing blow.
Work the problem.
