A Ministry of National Defense official yesterday said that completing the long-stalled purchase of a US arms package from the ministry's normal annual budget, instead of a special budget, was unlikely because of the government's constrained finances.
The official, who requested anonymity, was responding to a report in a Chinese-language newspaper, which said that US authorities have suggested that Taiwan can pay for the weapons out of the ministry's annual budget.
"The policy for the special arms budget has never changed. The ministry has not yet received any information from the US suggesting that Taiwan organize the arms bill into its annual budget," the official told the Central News Agency yesterday.
The NT$480 billion (US$15 billion) US arms-procurement budget would pay for Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missile batteries, 12 P-3C maritime patrol aircraft and eight diesel-powered submarines.
The newspaper reported that because the special arms budget has been blocked by pan-blue legislators, US government and think tank officials suggested to the ministry's Chief of the General Staff General Lee Tien-yu (
The US officials also urged that Taiwan raise its annual defense budget to between 3 percent to 3.5 percent of GDP.
In response, the ministry official agreed that the defense budget had been too low in recent years, accounting for only 2.4 percent of GDP this year. As a result, it would be difficult to pay for the NT$480 billion arms bill from the ministry's annual budget without a significant -- and unlikely -- budget increase.
If the government boosts the defense budget to 3 percent of GDP, it would be able to spend an additional NT$70 billion per year.
According to the newspaper report, a military official said if the government had these additional funds, it could probably purchase the PAC-3 missile batteries and 12 P-3C maritime patrol aircraft from the regular budget, with the costs spread over several years. However, if the price tag for the subs were added in, the total cost would be too high for the annual budget, the official said.
Vice Minister of the Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) Chen Ching-tsai (陳慶財) has said that the government will not be able to give the ministry a budget of 3 percent of GDP for the next five years, due to its constrained financial situation.
SEA WARNING LIKELY: The storm, named Gaemi, could become a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, with the Taipei City Government preparing for flooding A tropical depression east of the Philippines developed into a tropical storm named Gaemi at 2pm yesterday, and was moving toward eastern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Gaemi could begin to affect Taiwan proper on Tuesday, lasting until Friday, and could develop into a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, it said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued as early as Tuesday morning, it added. Gaemi, the third tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean this typhoon season, is projected to begin moving northwest today, and be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday, the agency said. Today, there would likely
CHIPS AND DEFENSE: Trump said the US had lost its chip business and Taipei should pay it for defense, and added that ‘we’re no different than an insurance company’ Taiwan-US relations are solid, and both sides are in agreement that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region are everyone’s concern, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday following comments by former US president Donald Trump that Taiwan “should pay” for US defense. Taiwan is thankful to the US for supporting Taiwan’s bid to participate in international organizations, Cho told a news conference in Taipei. “I know the people very well, respect them greatly. They did take about 100 percent of our chip business,” Trump told Bloomberg on June 25 in an interview that was published on Tuesday. “I think
SHOW OF SUPPORT: Taiwan has been one of the largest buyers of US defense equipment, supporting American businesses and jobs, US lawmakers said Taiwan has been paying for its own defense, a US Department of State official said on Wednesday, adding that purchases of military equipment are important to the US economy and for ensuring regional security. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller was asked at a news conference about comments by former US president Donald Trump, the Republican nominee in November’s US presidential election, who said during an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek that Taiwan should pay Washington for its defense needs. “The purchases that they [Taiwan] have made not only are important, we believe, to regional security, but are important to the United States economy,”
Hsu Wen-erh (許汶而) on Friday became the first Taiwanese to swim solo across the English Channel, saying she was very happy to bring Taiwan to the world. Hsu completed the challenge in 12 hours, 17 minutes and eight seconds, after swimming across the Strait of Gibraltar in October last year. She said she had planned to swim the English Channel in August next year, but seized the opportunity when a vacancy became available on the waiting list. She went to the UK in May to train for a test that involves swimming for six hours at 16°C, which people who want to swim