This was an absurd decision that was not appropriately assessed beforehand. The MND immediately came out to clarify that the budget for the US arms purchase remained unchanged and that it would apply for a new budget to procure choppers used for disaster relief. Former minister of national defense Chen Chao-min (陳肇敏) also said that disaster relief was only one of the responsibilities of the armed forces and not their most important task. These comments were intended as a slap in the face for Ma and to show that his wavering stance on Taiwan’s defense capabilities has sent mixed messages to Washington.
Ma has come under pressure from the military and has had no choice but to change his plans to cut national defense. His status as commander-in-chief and the relationship between the government and the military are fragile. Apart from causing the armed forces to lower their guard toward China, Ma’s actions have led the international community to question how serious Taiwan is about increasing its defense capabilities.
For these reasons, it is unlikely that the Obama administration will announce the sale of F-16C/D fighter planes to Taiwan next summer. The US is more likely to offer less sensitive military items to pacify the Ma administration.
Liu Shih-chung is a visiting fellow at the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution in Washington.
TRANSLATED BY DREW CAMERON
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