If only Apple could have gone for a coffee with Google before releasing their new Maps app, they may have been able to learn about a few of the ins and outs that they could expect post-launch. The first significant Maps-related request has come from Taiwan: the country is asking that Apple blur images of their new $1.4 billion early warning radar station (set to go online later this year) designed to detect distant aircraft and missiles.

David Lo, a defense-ministry spokesperson indicated that Apple should take Google’s lead but also suggested that the military should try to camouflage the site itself in addition –advice that seems wise given the need to otherwise disclose confidential details to Apple in order to obscure locations from their mapping data.

Apple is going to have to take these requests seriously if they want to be competitive with Google, who reports taking user privacy very seriously by promising to have “taken measures to help ensure the privacy and anonymity of individuals when images have been collected.”

The request comes from Taiwan just days after reports indicated that the Apple Maps data and imagery is significantly improving, though the image in question was actually recorded about a year ago.