The US$40 billion supplementary defense budget announced by President William Lai (賴清德) would target three major areas of investment: asymmetric warfare capabilities, emerging technologies and the “T-Dome” air defense system, National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆) said today.
Lai spoke of the new supplementary budget in a Washington Post op-ed published yesterday, which would work toward the goal of defense spending reaching 5 percent of GDP by 2030.
For next year, the government is proposing that defense spending would reach NT$949.5 billion (US$30.27 billion), or 3.32 percent of GDP.
Photo: CNA
A core component of the funding would be to build a full, multi-layered air-defense system called the “Taiwan Shield” or “T-Dome,” using “sensors” and “shooters,” Lin said.
The T-Dome was outlined by Lai in his Double Ten National Day address as a “rigorous air defense system in Taiwan with multi-layered defense, high-level detection and effective interception,” the Presidential Office said in a statement.
Taiwan’s current missile defense coverage is already comparable to that of many other countries, but the challenge lies in integrating different systems and allocating resources more effectively, Lin said.
Taiwan must be able to respond to low-cost weapons such as drones or long-range rockets with equally cost-effective defenses, he added.
It must also accelerate investment in emerging and innovative technologies, including artificial intelligence applications, uncrewed systems and integration of software and hardware interfaces, Lin said.
With the ruling Democratic Progressive Party holding the legislative minority, the government has been working to secure cross-party support for the budget, he said.
International think tanks and US experts have repeatedly warned that Taiwan has “limited time” and must strengthen defense capabilities as quickly as possible, he added.
The nature of modern warfare has changed entirely, as seen in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, making investment in uncrewed platforms and asymmetric capabilities essential, he said.
Taiwan is a defensive nation and does not seek expansion or aggression, so its weapons systems must be planned with flexibility and asymmetry in mind, he added.
The upcoming budget discussions would also include further investment in mobile weapons platforms, such as High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, he said.
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