New satellite photographs show the style of Taiwan’s presidential palace in the middle of the Chinese desert.
The reproduction of the construction discovered in the middle of a remote military education site of the Alxa League in the Inner Mongolia region of southwestern China.
It also features several government buildings in a critical domain of Taipei, the capital of Taiwan.
This is not the first time China has built such models at its military bases. In 2014, satellite images showed a mock-up of Taiwan’s president at some other military base in Inner Mongolia.
A video released in July 2015 also showed Chinese troops storming the fake presidential palace. However, Taiwanese defense analyst Joseph Wen, who shared the satellite snapshot, said it was the first time the entire Bo’ai Special Zone, or Taipei’s political center, had been replicated.
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Mr. Wen reported that the model appears to be used as a floor for aerial bombardment and artillery.
The Chinese Communist Party considers Taiwan part of its territory and does not rule out the use of force to take the island.
Satellite images, via Planet Labs, show that the buildings have been there since December 2022.
Defense Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng defended the resolution to mirror Taipei’s government buildings, adding that the Taiwanese military could also conduct military exercises in simulated locations.
China has also built mock-ups of aircraft carriers and other U. S. warships at its sites.
Last week, U. S. Navy Adm. John Aquilino, commander of the U. S. Indo-Pacific Command, told the U. S. House Armed Services Committee that China is increasing its military to a scale not seen since World War II and is poised to be in a position to invade Taiwan through 2027.
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