Although he surprisingly beat veteran military leader Ku Chung-lien (
He is, however, expected to be important to incumbent defense minister Tang Fei (
Wu's usefulness to Tang hinges mostly on the fact that he has been working as Tang's right-hand man for more than a year already. In addition, officials say, Wu is a hard-working man and disinterested in power struggles.
FILE PHOTO
According to the rotation rules accepted by the three armed services, the post of the chief of the general staff (CGS) should have been given to Wu two years ago, the defense officials said.
Wu, then navy commander-in-chief, was due to succeed Tang Fei as the CGS after the previous two CGS's, Lo Peng-Li (
But the position was offered instead to army General Tang Yao-ming (
Deprived of the once-in-a-lifetime chance, Wu apparently accepted the arrangement without any grudges and took the vice defense minister post, which is normally reserved for retiring military leaders.
Now, however, Wu stands the greatest chance to win back what he had lost -- to become not only defense minister, but someone who will be for the first time in Taiwan's history more powerful than the CGS.
The status change was mandated by restructuring plans that are to coming into effect over the next few years.
Over the past year, Wu assisted Tang in lobbying for the passage of the landmark Defense Law and Organization Law for Ministry of National Defense (MND) by the nation's legislature.
Despite these efforts Wu never tried to steal the limelight and faithfully served as Tang's aide.
This, observers explained, was why others held the impression that Wu was a man of few words and couldn't be eloquent when answering inquiries from lawmakers.
In Chinese society, Wu is just the kind of person a political leader would want as a right-hand man, analysts say.
With a mild man such as Wu serving as the defense minister, Tang would be able to keep the military under his virtual control even after he becomes the premier, they say.
That's also one of the main reasons why president-select Chen Shui-bian (
With unquestionable cooperation from Tang and Wu, Chen should face much less difficulty when pushing ahead on the military reforms required by law.
It is widely known in the military that Tang Fei was at odds with CGS Tang over the content of the two laws.
If CGS Tang became the defense minister, it would be much harder to promote military reform, analysts said.
But, maybe out of sheer politeness, Tang still recommended CGS Tang as his successor despite the fact that the move would not serve the best interest of the new government.
In addition, Wu's appointment would cause a reshuffle of Taiwan's high-ranking officers.
If Ku Chung-lien -- ex-navy commander-in-chief and now Taiwan's representative to Holland -- assumed the post of defense minister, the relationship between the minister and the premier might not have been as good as Tang would have expected, analysts said.
Ku, considered to be Chen's first choice for the position, had a better relationship with lawmakers and politicians outside the KMT.
But he is older than Tang, and analysts are of the opinion that with his dexterity in public relations he could have possibly outshone Tang.
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
The Philippines is working behind the scenes to enhance its defensive cooperation with Taiwan, the Washington Post said in a report published on Monday. “It would be hiding from the obvious to say that Taiwan’s security will not affect us,” Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilbert Teodoro Jr told the paper in an interview on Thursday last week. Although there has been no formal change to the Philippines’ diplomatic stance on recognizing Taiwan, Manila is increasingly concerned about Chinese encroachment in the South China Sea, the report said. The number of Chinese vessels in the seas around the Philippines, as well as Chinese
AUKUS: The Australian Ambassador to the US said his country is working with the Pentagon and he is confident that submarine issues will be resolved Australian Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd on Friday said that if Taiwan were to fall to China’s occupation, it would unleash China’s military capacities and capabilities more broadly. He also said his country is working with the Pentagon on the US Department of Defense’s review of the AUKUS submarine project and is confident that all issues raised will be resolved. Rudd, who served as Australian prime minister from 2007 to 2010 and for three months in 2013, made the remarks at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado and stressed the longstanding US-Australia alliance and his close relationship with the US Undersecretary
‘WORLD WAR III’: Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said the aid would inflame tensions, but her amendment was rejected 421 votes against six The US House of Representatives on Friday passed the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for fiscal 2026, which includes US$500 million for Taiwan. The bill, which totals US$831.5 billion in discretionary spending, passed in a 221-209 vote. According to the bill, the funds for Taiwan would be administered by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency and would remain available through Sept. 30, 2027, for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative. The legislation authorizes the US Secretary of Defense, with the agreement of the US Secretary of State, to use the funds to assist Taiwan in procuring defense articles and services, and military training. Republican Representative
RSS