The Executive Yuan yesterday proposed NT$415.1 billion (US$13.75 billion) in defense spending for next year, a double-digit increase from this year that includes funds for new fighter jets, weeks after China staged large-scale military exercises around the nation.
China carried out its largest-ever war games around Taiwan after a visit this month by US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
The overall defense budget proposed by the Cabinet would increase 13.9 percent year-on-year to a record NT$586.3 billion.
Photo: CNA
That includes an additional NT$108.3 billion for fighter jets and other equipment, as well as “special funds” for the defense ministry.
The Directorate-General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS) did not provide a specific breakdown of where the money would go.
The planned defense spending, which is a record high and must be approved by the Legislative Yuan, marks the nation’s sixth consecutive year of growth in defense spending since 2017.
The double-digit rise this year marks a sharp increase compared with its annual growth rate of below 4 percent since 2017.
DGBAS Minister Chu Tzer-ming (朱澤民) said the increase would mainly go to operational costs.
“We always give safety and national security the top priority ... that’s why [the budget for] operational costs has sharply increased,” Chu said, pointing to costs such as fuel and maintenance for aircraft and ships dispatched to counter Chinese military activity near Taiwan.
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) said in a statement that the budget gave full consideration to the “enemy threat” and was equivalent to 2.4 percent of Taiwan’s projected GDP for next year.
“In the face of the Chinese communists’ continuous expansion of targeted military activities in recent years and the normalized use of warships and military aircraft to raid and disturb Taiwan’s surrounding seas and airspace, the military adheres to the principle of preparing for war without seeking war and defending national security with strength,” it said.
Excluding the extra budget for military equipment and funds, the proposed defense spending represents a 12.9 percent year-on-year increase, compared with a 20.8 percent increase in the overall government budget proposed for next year.
The proposed spending would account for 14.6 percent of the government’s total expenditure for next year and is the fourth-largest segment, after social welfare, combined spending on education, science and culture, and economic development.
Taiwan last year announced an extra defense budget of US$8.69 billion by 2026, which comes on top of its yearly military spending, mostly on naval weapons, including missiles and warships.
China has continued its military activities near Taiwan, though on a reduced scale. On Wednesday it announced that live-fire drills would take place in a coastal part of China’s Fujian Province today and on Saturday, just north of the tiny Taiwan-controlled Wuchiu Island (烏坵) in the Taiwan Strait.
Institute for National Defense and Security Research analyst Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲) yesterday said that the MND had included special funds in its calculations of the country’s defense spending in relation to GDP, which is not the typical way such figures are derived.
The government should prioritize defense spending over other considerations in light of the clear and present danger facing the nation, he added.
Countries that face significant external threats to national security — such as Israel and South Korea — typically spend between 2.8 percent and 3.2 percent of their GDP on defense, which shows that Taiwan’s military budget has room for growth, he said.
Specifically, the MND should increase military spending to about NT$480 billion per year and set its sights on eventually using 3 percent of GDP for national defense annually, he said.
“The value of time should be factored into discussions about budget costs,” he said. “If the military does not receive funding when it is needed, we can end up paying more for the lost time.”
Additional reporting by Aaron Tu
NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT: An official said that Guan Guan’s comments had gone beyond the threshold of free speech, as she advocated for the destruction of the ROC China-born media influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China content that threatens national security, the National Immigration Agency said yesterday. Guan Guan has said many controversial things in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” while expressing hope for expedited “reunification.” The agency received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification last year. After investigating, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and account for her actions. Guan Guan appeared as required,
Japan and the Philippines yesterday signed a defense pact that would allow the tax-free provision of ammunition, fuel, food and other necessities when their forces stage joint training to boost deterrence against China’s growing aggression in the region and to bolster their preparation for natural disasters. Japan has faced increasing political, trade and security tensions with China, which was angered by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s remark that a Chinese attack on Taiwan would be a survival-threatening situation for Japan, triggering a military response. Japan and the Philippines have also had separate territorial conflicts with Beijing in the East and South China
A strong cold air mass is expected to arrive tonight, bringing a change in weather and a drop in temperature, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The coldest time would be early on Thursday morning, with temperatures in some areas dipping as low as 8°C, it said. Daytime highs yesterday were 22°C to 24°C in northern and eastern Taiwan, and about 25°C to 28°C in the central and southern regions, it said. However, nighttime lows would dip to about 15°C to 16°C in central and northern Taiwan as well as the northeast, and 17°C to 19°C elsewhere, it said. Tropical Storm Nokaen, currently
PAPERS, PLEASE: The gang exploited the high value of the passports, selling them at inflated prices to Chinese buyers, who would treat them as ‘invisibility cloaks’ The Yilan District Court has handed four members of a syndicate prison terms ranging from one year and two months to two years and two months for their involvement in a scheme to purchase Taiwanese passports and resell them abroad at a massive markup. A Chinese human smuggling syndicate purchased Taiwanese passports through local criminal networks, exploiting the passports’ visa-free travel privileges to turn a profit of more than 20 times the original price, the court said. Such criminal organizations enable people to impersonate Taiwanese when entering and exiting Taiwan and other countries, undermining social order and the credibility of the nation’s
RSS