Taiwan rehearses air raid drill

Traffic came to a halt and shoppers scurried into subway stations and basements on Tuesday as Taiwanese practiced taking cover from a mainland air attack.

The annual drill was a reminder of the threat the island faces from its giant communist neighbour, about 160km across the Taiwan Strait.

Although the mainland has repeatedly threatened to invade Taiwan and has been aggressively building up its arsenal of missiles, many Taiwanese don't believe the Chinese military is serious about attacking.

''They just want to scare us, that's all,'' said Huang Shan-chih, a middle-aged man selling lottery tickets outside a Taipei department store. ''But I'm not scared at all.''

Although many Taiwanese say they don't fear the mainland, jittery investors often send Taiwan's stock market plunging when the mainland conducts war games or issues threatening statements.

But some Taiwanese said Tuesday's drill was unnecessary because trade between Taiwan and the mainland was booming. Delivery driver Yeh Yen-jie said: ''If they attacked us, it would probably hurt them more than it would hurt us.''

Traffic had to stop in Taipei and other northern cities participating in the drill. People had to clear the sidewalks and take cover in buildings and basements. About 10,000 police, firefighters and other officials managed the mock air raid.

Some military analysts argue that the mainland lacks the ships, planes and experience for a successful Taiwan invasion. Others argue China could easily break Taiwan's will to resist with a missile barrage, an attack that would have wide public support on the mainland.

Taiwan's military considers the mainland's missiles to be the biggest threat to the island. It held a special media briefing on Tuesday about the mainland's missile programme.

Colonel Chang Ching, a missile expert, said he doubted the mainland would use nuclear weapons against Taiwan because that would amount to overkill and draw international condemnation.