Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) heavyweight and former Broadcasting Corp of China chairman Jaw Shaw-kong (趙少康) yesterday said he supports an NT$810 billion (US$25.64 billion) special defense budget, but proposed first approving NT$350 billion tied to existing US arms sale offers and freezing the remaining NT$460 billion until new US offers are issued.
The KMT presented the “NT$380+N billion” bill, which is far lower than the Executive Yuan’s proposed NT$1.25 trillion.
Politics is an art, not a matter of shouting in confrontation, recklessly charging ahead or winning through brute force, Jaw said.
Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times
True “win-win” outcomes come from upholding one’s principles, while skillfully handling matters in a way that makes it difficult for the other side to criticize, he said.
“My arms procurement plan is the best one,” Jaw said, adding that the NT$810 figure is based on what is left over after subtracting domestic procurements from the Cabinet’s proposal.
NT$350 billion tied to US Letters of Acceptance (LOA) should be approved first, while the remaining NT$460 should be frozen until the US issues new LOAs, he said.
That would meet US expectations for procurement and fulfill legislators’ responsibility to carefully review the budget, he said.
Allocating more than NT$800 billion for US arms purchases should reassure Washington, Jaw said, adding that it would be unreasonable for the US to oppose the plan as it has not issued additional LOAs.
The proposal would alleviate US concerns while maintaining the KMT’s position and safeguarding Taiwan’s interests, he said.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) called Jaw’s proposal, as well as KMT Legislator Hsu Chia-hsin’s (徐巧芯) previous proposal of a more than NT$900 billion defense budget, constructive.
As long as talks move forward, it benefits future communication on the defense budget, he said.
Former KMT legislator Jason Hsu (許毓仁) said that the KMT can exercise strong oversight, demand transparency and guard against corruption, without paralyzing the government, and the party should not let disputes jeopardize national security.
If the defense budget is not finalized before Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) planned meeting with US President Donald Trump, Taiwan would be creating strategic vulnerabilities before a potential shift in the international situation, he said.
The KMT’s proposed “NT$380+N billion” special budget would be difficult to implement and explain to the US, he said.
While the “+N” means waiting until the US issues more LOAs to draw up the specific budget, Taiwan is already facing more frequent threats and “gray zone” incursions from China, he added.
If defense planning is not done comprehensively across the armed forces and budgets are only set after the US agrees to sell specific equipment, Taiwan could end up with gaps in its military readiness and capability, Jason Hsu said.
If the Legislative Yuan passed a vague, incomplete special defense budget that is difficult to implement, the US would doubt Taiwan’s determination and capability to defend itself, he said.
The Ministry of National Defense is slated to brief the legislature on the defense budget again today, and cross-party negotiations are expected to be held on Wednesday.
Additional reporting by Lin Che-yuan
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