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US Army ‘Green Berets’ Permanently Stationed Near Chinese Border in Taiwan Strait
After 45 years of the United States withdrawing its forces from Taiwan following the normalization of diplomatic relations with China, recent revelations indicate that the ‘Green Beret’ forces are now permanently stationed on islands in the Taiwan Strait near the Chinese border.
Taiwanese Defense Chief Chiu Kuo-cheng officially confirmed this presence when questioned about the US Army Special Forces stationed there, potentially leading to increased tensions with China.
Previous Mentions and Official Confirmation
Former President Tsai Ing-wen had previously mentioned ‘occasional training sessions with US instructors’ three years ago. However, Chiu’s recent statement marks the first official confirmation of the permanent nature of these activities.
According to reports from Taiwan’s United Daily News (UDN), US Army Green Berets from the 1st Special Forces Group are now permanently stationed at bases of the 101st Amphibious Reconnaissance Battalion, a Taiwanese army special operations force, located in outlying island counties of Penghu and Kinmen, with Kinmen lying just over a mile from Chinese shores.
Additional reports suggest an American military presence in the northeast city of Taoyuan on Taiwan’s main island, providing specialized training on drone equipment for Taiwan’s elite Airborne Special Service Company.
US Troop Presence and Training Programs
The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) in 2023 facilitated the arrival of US troops to conduct training programs for troops on Taiwan’s front line, with the U.S. Army Green Berets from the 1st Special Forces Group stationed in the outlying island counties of Penghu and Kinmen, just a mile away from Chinese territory.
The 1st Battalion of the Pacific-oriented Special Forces Group is forward-deployed in Okinawa, Japan, while the rest of the battalion is stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state. There has been no official US military presence in Taiwan since its withdrawal in 1979.
Officially, U.S.-Taiwan military exchanges are handled by the de facto U.S. embassy, the American Institute in Taiwan, despite the US switching diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing. Nonetheless, the US remains Taiwan’s largest arms supplier.
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