TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The military police could double its size from 5,000 to 10,000 officers in order to prevent an attack on the president or on key installations, reports said Thursday (April 13).

A potential “decapitation strike” targeting President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) or the Presidential Office Building has long been seen as a possibility, with Chinese troops even using a scale replica of the building in the desert of Inner Mongolia to practice for an attack.

A decision on the doubling of the military police’s size has not been finalized yet, and would have to be coordinated with the extension of compulsory military service to one year from 2024, the Liberty Times reported.

The expansion of the force would occur gradually, with an estimated 818 members to be added during 2023. The move will also likely increase Taiwan’s demand for locally produced Kestrel anti-armor rockets and for Stinger missiles from the United States.