The Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) presidential candidate Chen Shui-bian (
"Mr. Lien's plan to end conscription is so simplistic it smacks of childishness, and will sacrifice Taiwan's security. His purpose is simply to cheat young voters," Chen said.
PHOTO: LIAO CHEN-HUI, TAIPEI TIMES
Lien retorted, however, that Chen's criticisms reflected a lack of understanding of military affairs consequent upon his not performing military service.
PHOTO: LIAO CHEN-HUI, TAIPEI TIMES
The two traded their accusations during yesterday's televised policy speech program, broadcast by China Television and hosted by the Central Election Commission. Each candidate had 30 minutes in which to outline his platform.
Chen first stressed that a fully professional military was something he had advocated throughout the past decade, but that it was a goal that needed to be achieved step by step, rather than in what he called an improvised manner.
"The former KMT government endeavored to hollow out the nation's financial base. Now its presidential candidate wishes to return to such strategies; he intends to hollow out the nation's defensive base," Chen said.
Chen said the creation of a fully professional military required three phases. First, he said, the best soldiers must be selected, and the number of troops reduced from 385,000 to 270,000.
In the second stage, there would be both enlisted and conscripted troops, in a 3:2 ration. Only in the third stage would conscription be completely abolished, he said.
"Military service is an obligation required by the Constitution. Any idea to change this therefore requires a Constitutional amendment, a process which takes years. It is not as simple as Mr. Lien's childish plan," Chen said.
To defend his promise to achieve military service reform by 2008, Lien further explained yesterday that after his victory in the March 20 presidential election, his administration would facilitate the passage of a bill creating a fully professional military service within one year and pass a special budget of NT$60 billion to put the policy into effect as quickly as possible.
"Since we must develop a defensive strategy with advanced technology and elite personnel, as well as allow our young generation to continue to contribute to society, we will require that all young men of draft age participate in a military training course lasting three months," Lien said.
According to Lien's plan, Taiwan's fully professional military would require 120,000 troops, 80,000 officers and NCOs and 50,000 graduates of military schools to make up a high-quality, defensive force.
"Mr. Chen says my plan is unrealistic. I can say that the reason he cannot accept it is because he lacks sufficient understanding of military affairs, especially because he never did military service," Lien said.
Chen was exempted from military service because of a malformed elbow as a result of falls in his childhood which prevents his arm from being stretched out fully. He did however do three months basic training in the reserves.
On a separate note, Lien then pledged that if he wins the election, he will donate all his earnings and campaign subsidies to underprivileged group, poor households and the unemployed.
Chen called on the public to take no notice of Lien's promise, because, he said, his donations would amount to less than the KMT was likely to waste implementing its campaign promises.
"A fully professional military service will cost hundreds of billions of dollars, while Lien's donations won't exceed a few hundred million," he said.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi yesterday lavished US President Donald Trump with praise and vows of a “golden age” of ties on his visit to Tokyo, before inking a deal with Washington aimed at securing critical minerals. Takaichi — Japan’s first female prime minister — pulled out all the stops for Trump in her opening test on the international stage and even announced that she would nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize, the White House said. Trump has become increasingly focused on the Nobel since his return to power in January and claims to have ended several conflicts around the world,
GLOBAL PROJECT: Underseas cables ‘are the nervous system of democratic connectivity,’ which is under stress, Member of the European Parliament Rihards Kols said The government yesterday launched an initiative to promote global cooperation on improved security of undersea cables, following reported disruptions of such cables near Taiwan and around the world. The Management Initiative on International Undersea Cables aims to “bring together stakeholders, align standards, promote best practices and turn shared concerns into beneficial cooperation,” Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said at a seminar in Taipei. The project would be known as “RISK,” an acronym for risk mitigation, information sharing, systemic reform and knowledge building, he said at the seminar, titled “Taiwan-Europe Subsea Cable Security Cooperation Forum.” Taiwan sits at a vital junction on
RSS