In an article published today on this page (“Let civilians lead defense ministry”), Yao Chung-yuan (姚中原), former deputy director of the Ministry of National Defense’s strategic planning department, writes that Taiwan should have a minister of national defense who comes from a nonmilitary background.
While this might eventually happen, now is not the time. At least, no such change should be made during president-elect William Lai’s (賴清德) first term in office.
Although Lai’s Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) would control the executive arm of government when he takes office in May, it is outnumbered by opposition parties in the legislature. The DPP is already embroiled in fierce fighting with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Faced with intense questioning by opposition legislators, a civilian defense minister might well stumble to answer.
Meanwhile, tensions across the Taiwan Strait have worsened following a Feb. 14 incident in which a Chinese fishing boat capsized while a Taiwanese coast guard patrol boat chased it out of restricted waters between Kinmen County and Xiamen, China. A defense minister with a military background would be better suited to assist the president, direct the armed forces, and handle this and other crises.
A defense minister with a military background would also be able to quickly learn the ropes of their ministerial duties and take on the readiness and preparation challenges related to possible armed conflict.
Any civilian defense minister who comes into office after Lai is inaugurated on May 20 cannot possibly be fully prepared. They might not even be familiar with the units of the army, navy and air force. If they find themselves floundering, they might have to rely on their subordinates to save them. That could put Lai’s government in a shaky political situation, which would be bad for the country.
Yao said that having military personnel at the top in a structure of close relations between graduates of the same institutions has left the military riddled with problems, such as communist spies leaking secrets and frequent infringements of military discipline. Such circumstances make it even more essential for the Lai administration to focus on stability in choosing its first national defense minister before implementing other reforms.
In an interview broadcast on Saturday, Swiss public radio station RSI asked Pope Francis about Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
“I believe that the strongest are those who see the situation, think about the people, and have the courage to raise the white flag and negotiate,” the pontiff said.
A potential war in the Taiwan Strait is the next highly uncertain risk for the world. If war breaks out, Taiwan would not be the side raising a white flag.
If incoming president Lai, with his civilian background, appoints a defense minister from the military establishment, it would probably be the “perfect match.”
Fang Ping-sheng is a retired major in the Republic of China Marine Corps.
Translated by Julian Clegg
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