"Removal of the missiles by China would involve a sophisticated review of its military system and would be deemed a positive step towards building trust between Taiwan and China, " Lee Hsi-ming, an MND department chief said at a press conference at which Taiwan's 2009 national defense report was released.

President Ma Ying-jeou in an interview Monday with Reuters urged China to scrap the growing number of missiles it has aimed at Taiwan.

"(There are) more than 1,000 (missiles) and they haven't changed that. The number continues to go up. That is certainly a great concern for the people here," Ma told Reuters.

Responding to media questions about the number of missiles that are deployed mostly along China's southeastern coast opposite Taiwan, Colonel Kao Chung-pang of the MND's military information division said that his ministry "knows the exact number of missiles but it cannot make that information public." He did not elaborate further.

David G. Brown, a U.S. expert on China affairs, said in Comparative Connections, a quarterly published by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), that the number of missiles has grown to 1,500.

Kao said the buildup of missiles is a long-term strategic policy for China and an issue of deep concern among Japan, the United States and other Western countries.

Lee said China will send a goodwill message by acting to either scrap or remove its missiles targeting Taiwan, which would be helpful to establishing cross-strait CBMs.

Saying that the MND will do its best to complete all necessary preparations for the cross-strait CBMs, Lee added that it is currently collecting and studying domestic and foreign reports on CBMs, especially those between China and its neighbors like Russia, India and Kazakhstan.

(By Lee Shu-hua and Bear Lee)