The prospective all-volunteer military service has a shortage of low-ranking leaders, prompting the adoption of policies to fast-track promotions for non-commissioned officers and bolster reserve officer training programs at universities.
Former president Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration intended that the transition to a fully-voluntary military force be completed by 2014, but insufficient sign-up numbers pushed back the policy’s realization.
Minister of National Defense Feng Shih-kuan (馮世寬) in December last year said that the nation would successfully transition into an all-volunteer military service by the Lunar New Year, with 90 percent of the military made up of volunteer soldiers and officers.
However, the military lacks mid to low-level officers, sources said, adding that as of May, only 70 percent of its allotted officer positions were occupied.
Only 81 percent of captain’s billets, or 9,994 positions, were filled, while the military had only 4,762, or 54 percent, of first and second lieutenant positions filled, sources said.
The military requires at least 2,200 more volunteers to meet its 80 percent target of first and second lieutenant volunteers.
Non-commissioned officers make up 88 percent of staff sergeants, 87 percent of sergeants and 62 percent of corporals, accounting for 79 percent of non-commissioned officer positions.
The nation’s declining birthrate is the primary reason for the lack of low to mid-level officers, as military academies are not seeing the expected recruitment numbers, said a military official who declined to be named, adding the transition to an all-volunteer service has removed the necessity of recruiting reserve officers for compulsory service.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tsai Shih-ying (蔡適應) said the lack of low to mid-level officers is because of changes to the system.
The government should mull more changes, such as implementing measures that would enable junior officers and sergeants to change careers after retirement, Tsai said, adding that extending the minimum grade was also an option.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lu Yu-ling (呂玉玲) said the government’s pension system revisions should be investigated and ameliorated to offer military personnel more security, which would attract more people to sign up for the military.
She also encouraged the ministry to launch military leadership courses.
The manufacture of the remaining 28 M1A2T Abrams tanks Taiwan purchased from the US has recently been completed, and they are expected to be delivered within the next one to two months, a source said yesterday. The Ministry of National Defense is arranging cargo ships to transport the tanks to Taiwan as soon as possible, said the source, who is familiar with the matter. The estimated arrival time ranges from late this month to early next month, the source said. The 28 Abrams tanks make up the third and final batch of a total of 108 tanks, valued at about NT$40.5 billion
Two Taiwanese prosecutors were questioned by Chinese security personnel at their hotel during a trip to China’s Henan Province this month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. The officers had personal information on the prosecutors, including “when they were assigned to their posts, their work locations and job titles,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said. On top of asking about their agencies and positions, the officers also questioned the prosecutors about the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement, a pact that serves as the framework for Taiwan-China cooperation on combating crime and providing judicial assistance, Liang
A group from the Taiwanese Designers in Australia association yesterday represented Taiwan at the Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne. The march, held in the St. Kilda suburb, is the city’s largest LGBTQIA+ parade and the flagship event of the annual Midsumma Festival. It attracted more than 45,000 spectators who supported the 400 groups and 10,000 marchers that participated this year, the association said. Taiwanese Designers said they organized a team to march for Taiwan this year, joining politicians, government agencies, professionals and community organizations in showing support for LGBTQIA+ people and diverse communities. As the first country in Asia to legalize same-sex
MOTIVES QUESTIONED The PLA considers Xi’s policies toward Taiwan to be driven by personal considerations rather than military assessment, the Epoch Times reports Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) latest purge of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) leadership might have been prompted by the military’s opposition to plans of invading Taiwan, the Epoch Times said. The Chinese military opposes waging war against Taiwan by a large consensus, putting it at odds with Xi’s vision, the Falun Gong-affiliated daily said in a report on Thursday, citing anonymous sources with insight into the PLA’s inner workings. The opposition is not the opinion of a few generals, but a widely shared view among the PLA cadre, the Epoch Times cited them as saying. “Chinese forces know full well that
RSS