The number of conscripts reporting for one-year military service is set to grow to about 53,600 by 2029, while the budget for military personnel would likely increase by NT$16 billion (US$522.41 million) by then, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said in a written report to the Legislative Yuan.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Dec. 27 announced that compulsory military service would be extended from four months to one year as part of efforts to bolster the nation’s combat readiness in the event of a Chinese attack. The change in policy affects all men born after Jan. 1, 2005, starting from Jan. 1 next year.
Minister of National Defense Chiu Kuo-cheng (邱國正) is to brief lawmakers about the details of the plan in a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Foreign and National Defense Committee today.
Photo: Daniel Ceng, AP
Although 78,600 conscripts would be drafted next year, only about 9,100 are expected to report for the one-year military service, as most high-school graduates tend to postpone their service until after college, the ministry said.
The remaining 69,500 conscripts would undergo four months of military training, it said.
The number of conscripts undergoing one-year military service would gradually increase to 53,600 by 2029, while the number taking part in the four-month training would gradually decrease to 9,300, the ministry said.
Conscripts would mostly supplement garrison troops, followed by main battle forces, it said.
To ensure that troops have enough leaders, the ministry said it would in 2027 begin offering an annual test to recruit college graduates to serve as professional army and non-commissioned officers.
As the monthly salary of a one-year conscript is to be raised to NT$26,307, the budget for military personnel costs is estimated to increase by NT$2 billion next year, it said.
Due to the annual increase of one-year conscripts, military personnel costs would rise by NT$16 billion by 2029.
Rifle training for conscripts is also to be adjusted.
Aside from being trained to shoot in a prone position, conscripts would be trained to shoot while standing and kneeling, as well as how to change shooting positions, it said.
They would learn to change magazines and troubleshoot their rifles, the ministry said.
The ministry’s “Intensified Shooting Training Monthly Execution Plan” showed that military units are practicing shooting once a month until December, with each conscript allowed to shoot 50 rounds.
Conscripts are allowed to shoot 60 rounds during night-time combat training, which is conducted once per season, the ministry said, adding that they are allowed to shoot 100 rounds during annual shooting training at a military base.
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
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
TAIWAN IS TAIWAN: US Representative Tom Tiffany said the amendment was not controversial, as ‘Taiwan is not — nor has it ever been — part of Communist China’ The US House of Representatives on Friday passed an amendment banning the US Department of Defense from creating, buying or displaying any map that shows Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The “Honest Maps” amendment was approved in a voice vote on Friday as part of the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for the 2026 fiscal year. The amendment prohibits using any funds from the act to create, buy or display maps that show Taiwan, Kinmen, Matsu, Penghu, Wuciou (烏坵), Green Island (綠島) or Orchid Island (Lanyu, 蘭嶼) as part of the PRC. The act includes US$831.5 billion in
‘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