The three main political parties yesterday agreed to authorize the government to sign US agreements for four arms sales packages before the defense budget is passed, after officials warned that Taiwan would go to the back of the line if it missed the deadline.
President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has urged the legislature to pass NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.25 billion) in extra defense spending over eight years, but the opposition parties, which together control the most seats, say the proposals are unclear, and they cannot be expected to pass a “blank check,” despite supporting defense.
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) have come up with their own, less expensive proposals, but the Ministry of National Defense has said that the letters of offer and acceptance for the weapons with the US have to be signed or Taiwan would lose its place in the production and delivery line.
Photo: Ann Wang, Reuters
Lawmakers from both sides yesterday agreed during a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee that the government can still sign the agreements in advance, even if the reviews of the spending proposals are not approved in time.
The weapons to be signed for include tube-launched, optically tracked, wire command link guided anti-tank missiles, M109A7 self-propelled howitzers, Lockheed Martin Javelin missiles and the High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS).
Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) on Tuesday told reporters the HIMARS letter expires on March 26, for 82 systems the US announced in December last year as part of an US$11 billion arms sale package for Taiwan.
Ammunition would be removed from the package if Taiwan missed the deadline, Department of Strategic Planning Director Lieutenant General Huang Wen-chi (黃文啟) said.
Sunday is the deadline to sign for the other weapons systems, the ministry said.
The US$11 billion package also includes Altius-600 and Altius-700M drones, although letters of acceptance for those systems have yet to be issued.
Yesterday’s revised motion, which also directs the Cabinet to inform the legislature of the estimated delivery dates for the four systems, is expected to be approved at a plenary session.
A request by Democratic Progressive Party legislators to remove wording criticizing the ruling party’s “extremely opaque” handling of the government’s special defense budget was rejected.
KMT and TPP lawmakers also declined to grant the Cabinet prior approval to sign a letter of acceptance for the Altius drones.
Last month, a bipartisan group of 37 US lawmakers voiced concern to senior Taiwanese lawmakers about the stalled plans.
US President Donald Trump’s administration has pressed allies to increase defense spending, a plank Lai and his government have enthusiastically embraced.
Additional reporting by CNA
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