Taiwan coastguard’s rare missile firing reveals deepening links with navy

Taiwan’s coastguard fired a supersonic anti-ship missile during a military exercise last week, an unusual move by a civilian law enforcement agency that analysts say could be aimed at complicating potential war plans.

The drill matters not only because it highlights the growing integration between the agency and Taiwan’s navy, experts argue, but also because missile-armed coastguard vessels would add another threat the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) would have to account for in a conflict.

On Friday, the Anping-class coastguard patrol vessel Qijin launched a home-grown Hsiung Feng III, or HF-3, which hit a decommissioned navy frigate more than 100km (62 miles) away, according to local media. The coastguard also fired an HF-2, an older subsonic anti-ship weapon, during the drills, which involved Taiwan’s army, navy and air force.

This means at least three named vessels of the coastguard’s 12-ship Anping class have now fired Hsiung Feng missiles, underscoring a broader effort to turn them into an additional pool of naval strike platforms.