The government yesterday proposed extra defense spending of NT$240 billion (US$8.66 billion) over the next five years, including on new missiles, as it warned of an urgent need to upgrade weapons in the face of “severe threats” from China.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has made modernizing the armed forces and increasing defense spending a priority, especially as Beijing ramps up military and diplomatic pressure against the nation.
The money, which comes on top of planned military spending of NT$471.7 billion for next year, would need to be approved by the Legislative Yuan, where Tsai’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party has a large majority, meaning its passage should be smooth.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
“The Chinese communists have continued to invest heavily in national defense budgets, its military strength has grown rapidly, and it has frequently dispatched aircraft and ships to invade and harass our seas and airspace,” the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement after a weekly Cabinet meeting.
“In the face of severe threats from the enemy, the nation’s military is engaged in military building and preparation work, and it is urgent to obtain mature and rapid mass production weapons and equipment in a short period of time,” it added.
Deputy Minister of National Defense Wang Shin-lung (王信龍) said the new weapons would be made domestically, as the nation boosts its production prowess, although the US would probably remain an important parts and technology provider.
Photo: Ritchie B. Tongo, EPA-EFE
Taiwan has been keen to demonstrate that it can defend itself, especially amid questions about whether the US would come to its aid if China attacked.
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said during the Cabinet meeting that there was great need to augment the military’s combat capabilities, especially for the naval and air force branches.
The special budget has prioritized domestically produced armaments, which could lead to increased corporate investment in the national defense supply chain, creating a win-win scenario for boosting economic growth and autonomous national defense production capabilities, Su said.
The weapons it aims to buy include cruise missiles and warships, the ministry said.
Eight categories of missiles are to be built domestically as part of the budget, Wang said.
They include coastal anti-surface missile systems; the Antelope air defense system; the Tien Kung III (Sky Bow III) land-based surface-to-air missile; an attack drone system; the Wan Chien (Thousand Swords) missile system and the Hsiung Feng IIE (Brave Wind) missile system, he said.
The special budget also calls for the installation of combat systems on Coast Guard Administration ships and continuing the Indigenous Shipbuilding Program, he added.
All items are considered critical if the military is to rapidly build up its combat capabilities, Wang said.
The ministry would provide more details on each item during a budget review, he added.
The announcement came as Taiwan is in the middle of its annual Han Kuang military exercises, which began on Monday and are to end today.
The army yesterday simulated fending off an invasion, firing artillery from a beach on the southern coast.
The exercises, Taiwan’s major war games, have been held annually since 1984, in the form of live-fire drills and computerized war games, to test the military’s combat readiness in the face of a possible Chinese invasion.
Additional reporting by CNA
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS