TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The U.S. has sent military instructors to Taiwan to train local troops in operating the M1A2T Abrams tank, and they have also started setting up a training ground in northwestern Taiwan's Hsinchu County, while 84 Taiwanese soldiers are to be sent to the U.S. to undergo tank training next year.

On Tuesday (April 19), a photo surfaced from the Facebook page for the U.S. Army Armor Basic Officer Leader course showing a Taiwanese officer in a Taiwan Army uniform taking part in training for the M1A2T tank. A Ministry of National Defense (MND) official on Wednesday evening (April 20) told CNA that military exchanges between Taiwan and the U.S. have been going on for many years, but this time it is a military training course that is exclusively for troops from the two countries.

The official said that Taiwan will send 84 troops, including 36 operators and 48 maintenance personnel to the U.S. next year to receive training on the M1A2T over the course of six to nine months. In addition, the official stated that the U.S. a few days ago dispatched military instructors to Taiwan to provide training in maintenance, training grounds, fortifications, simulator purchasing, and other projects including code development.

The American instructors have also started to construct a tank training area at the Kengzikou training ground in Hsinchu County's Xinfeng Township. The training facilities are expected to be completed next year.

Taiwan has purchased 108 of the third-generation American battle tanks, with the first two to be handed over to Taiwanese troops training in the U.S. on June 30. The first large batch of 38 tanks will be officially delivered to Taiwan in 2024, followed by 42 in 2025, and 28 in 2026, according to the MND.