Taiwan will extend compulsory military service for all men from four months to a year amid growing threats from China, President Tsai Ing-wen said at a press conference in Taipei on Tuesday, CNN reported..

Four months of mandatory military training "

" Taiwan's government and people don't want it, and neither does the international community.. But the world does not fall from the sky. We must actively prepare for war in order to prevent war, and we must be able to wage war in order to stop war,” said the President of Taiwan..

According to her, the new term of conscription, which is introduced from the beginning of 2024, will apply to men born after 2005..

The move marks a turnaround for Taiwan, a self-governing democracy of 23.5 million people that cut mandatory conscription from one year to four months back in 2018..

All recruits under the new system will be required to complete eight weeks of basic military training before 44 weeks of ground training, according to the Taiwan Ministry of Defense..

The monthly salary of conscripts will also be increased from about $195 to more than $650 per month, Tsai Ing-wen said..

“The maintenance of peace depends on national defense, and national defense is the responsibility of every citizen,” she said..

A White House spokesman welcomed Taiwan's decision in a commentary to CNN, noting that it underlines Taiwan's "

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On Tuesday, Tsai Ing-wen also announced a series of reforms to Taiwan's military structure, including the division of forces into four main categories: the main fighting force, the garrison force, the civil defense system, and the reserve system..

The main fighting force will consist of professional soldiers and take responsibility for territorial security, while the garrison force will consist mainly of conscripts and perform tasks to protect key infrastructure inside Taiwan..

Public debate over the extension of the conscription period intensified sharply after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February, rekindling discussions about Taiwan's preparedness for a potential Chinese military attack.. The island began to introduce a longer training schedule for its reservists, and the Taiwan Ministry of Defense carefully studied the tactics of the war in Ukraine in order to improve the combat condition of the army..

But while extending the enlistment period could help increase the army's manpower, defense experts say there is also a need to focus on how conscripts can receive training that meets Taiwan's modern defense needs if conflict arises..

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Recall, the director of the CIA recently said that China could attack Taiwan in the near future.. Despite this, China still plans to resume diplomatic relations with the United States in 2023..