Xi Threatens Again? Japanese Media: Beijing Strengthens Decapitation Operations Against Taiwan Presidential Office

Screen shows news footage of military drills conducted in areas around the island of Taiwan. 

[People News] The CCP has always combined propaganda with military intimidation against Taiwan, and currently the situation in the Taiwan Strait is becoming increasingly severe. According to an exclusive report by Japan’s Sankei Shimbun, satellite image analysis obtained by the Japan Institute for National Fundamentals indicates that, in preparation for an attack on Taiwan, the CCP has built a “mock Taiwan Presidential Office” at a training site in Inner Mongolia, next to which it has now constructed a mock Judicial Yuan in preparation for decapitation operations against Taiwan. The report further pointed out that Xi Jinping’s regime is conveying its intention to strengthen “decapitation operations” targeting Taiwan’s president.

Deutsche Welle reported that, according to the exclusive Sankei Shimbun report, the Japan Institute for National Fundamentals (JINF) obtained satellite image analysis on the 1st showing that the PLA, in preparation for attacking Taiwan, has built a “mock Presidential Office” at a training site in Inner Mongolia, and on adjacent land has newly built a “mock Judicial Yuan,” connected by a 280-meter-long tunnel. The aim is to strengthen decapitation operations against Taiwan’s president.

Veteran Japanese media figure Akio Yaita said on Twitter that, in addition to the mock Presidential Office, there are also “mock Ministry of Foreign Affairs” facilities within the base. These highly realistic buildings are not only for military training purposes but also serve to launch psychological warfare against Taiwan, by publicizing such facilities to create an atmosphere of intimidation that the CCP is already fully prepared.

This training site, the Zhurihe Joint Tactical Training Base in Inner Mongolia, is the PLA’s largest training ground, covering an area of about 1,066 square kilometers.

The PLA’s mock Presidential Office training area has expanded nearly threefold since 2020. JINF noted that the PLA not only built these mock facilities but has continued to conduct simulated combat exercises there.

The report said that in August 2022, PLA training involved deploying multiple armored vehicles. What appeared to be brigade-level units conducted exercises against an imagined enemy defending the Presidential Office. Since August this year, armored vehicles and roadblocks have been observed on roads near the mock Presidential Office, suggesting ongoing training.

JINF researcher Makio Nakagawa stated that under Xi Jinping’s leadership, the Zhurihe base has clearly accelerated expansion, and the training has become more combat-oriented. This time, not only was the mock Presidential Office expanded, but a mock Judicial Yuan and underground passage were newly constructed—undoubtedly a warning to Taiwan that even if you have underground tunnels, you still cannot escape.

Chung Chih-tung, assistant researcher at Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, previously analyzed that the CCP’s move is intended to familiarize the PLA with the terrain around Taiwan’s Presidential Office. He asserted that the PLA’s goal, once an invasion begins, is to swiftly occupy and paralyze Taiwan’s administrative functions.

Chung pointed out that within the CCP’s simulated area there is also the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, whose Liberty Square in front is large enough for a full regiment (500 troops) to conduct an airdrop, after which forces could rapidly advance on the Presidential Office. He said satellite images show that the Taiwan Presidential Office is a key target for the CCP’s invasion plans.

In fact, the CCP’s secret training to simulate the capture of Taiwan’s Presidential Office was already exposed last year. It first came to light when netizens posted on social media photos of a mock-up of the Presidential Office’s surrounding Bo’ai Special District in the Alxa League desert of Inner Mongolia. In March last year, Business Insider commented that, like other previous mock facilities, this one seemed to indicate Beijing’s intentions and priorities, though its exact use remained unclear. Business Insider also noted that the CCP often engages in aggressive coercive actions that worry its neighbors, has been carrying out massive military buildups and modernization, and has never abandoned the option of using force to unify Taiwan.

In 2015, when CCTV reported on a PLA live-fire exercise, it even broadcast images of this mock Presidential Office, showing that targeting the Presidential Office was no longer a secret for the PLA.

However, at present the CCP has not made any specific response to the satellite images and analysis published by Japanese media and JINF.△