Taiwan’s president said yesterday “there can be no more waiting” and called on the opposition-controlled parliament to pass his $40 billion special defense budget.
Speaking at a press conference with Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) and the top brass of the Taiwanese military, President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) noted that Taiwan had recently been designated as a NATO-plus partner. He stressed that delays could jeopardize arms deliveries and “Taiwan’s place in international priorities.”
Lai proposed the special defense budget in November to pay for eight years worth of upcoming arms purchases from the U.S.
Later at its own press conference, the opposition Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) announced that it would prioritize the defense budget when Taiwanese legislators return from recess in March.
The TPP, which in conjunction with the main opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) has blocked Lai’s special defence budget 11 times, said it would allow the spending measure to be reviewed in parliament alongside its own version of the bill.
The TPP’s version of the special defense budget, which passed its first reading late last month, would slash the government’s spending request by nearly 70%.
Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense has warned that failure to approve the government’s special defense budget may delay arms purchases and affect how Taiwan’s allies view Taiwan’s commitment to self-defense.
The KMT’s whip, Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁), said his party will present its own version of the special defense budget after talks with TPP.
“The final bill passed by the legislature won’t be the Executive Yuan’s version. Opposition parties won’t accept the entire thing,” Fu said.
International allies have recently conveyed apprehension over the defense spending gridlock in Taiwan’s parliament.
Five U.S. senators and the U.S. representative to Taiwan, Raymond Greene, have publicly expressed concern over obstruction of the spending measure by Taiwan’s opposition.
At an event hosted by Taiwan Foreign Correspondents’ Club last week, de facto French ambassador Franck Paris delivered an unusually frank warning about “paralysis across the whole spectrum of key institutions of Taiwanese democracy.”
Czech politician Marketa Pekarova Adamova told Taiwanese lawmakers last month that self-defense “should be a national cross-party priority” and an “obligation” for politicians.
Speaking with Nikkei Asia, Pekarova Adamova, a former president of the Czech Chamber of Deputies, cited the Ukrainian military’s preparedness, quoting the Roman adage: “If you want peace, prepare for a war.”
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