Opposition lawmakers have cut Taiwan's military budget, slashing three percent in weapons and facilities spending, as well as placing heavy freezes on its indigenous submarine and drone development projects. The defense ministry warns this could be detrimental to its asymmetric warfare capabilities. Opposition lawmakers who supported the budget cuts say the ministry has been overspending and needs to reevaluate its strategy.
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00:00Taiwan President Lai Ching-teh observed defensive military drills near an airstrip in the southeast
00:05and visited nearby naval facilities, where he thanked service members for protecting
00:09the country.
00:10His comments come after Taiwan's two opposition parties pushed record-high budget cuts through
00:20the legislature, and as China ramps up air and sea incursions around Taiwan to intimidate
00:25it.
00:26The overall 7 percent budget cuts include a freeze on half of the expected US$61 million
00:53in funding earmarked for Taiwan's domestic submarine program, as well as funding for
00:58its drone testing facility.
01:01Opposition Kuomintang legislators were concerned about delays with the project and questioned
01:04the necessity for the submarines in Taiwan's overall defense strategy, which is focused
01:09on small, mobile units engaging in asymmetric warfare.
01:13The budget now requires that the first domestically produced submarine, unveiled in September
01:182023, complete operation and quality tests before the frozen half of the funding can
01:23be released.
01:25The Kuomintang accused the ruling party of misusing defense funds before, criticizing
01:29the Democratic Progressive Party's support of citizen defense groups like Kuma Academy,
01:34founded by DPP legislator Puma Shen, and saying they should be better spent on bolstering
01:39the armed forces.
02:00But the defense ministry is pushing back against this, saying the cuts could hinder the country's
02:05progress in defense development.
02:19Adding to pressure on the government and defense ministry is the recent inauguration of U.S.
02:23President Donald Trump, who has urged Taiwan to increase its defense spending and pay for
02:28defense aid from the U.S.
02:30The U.S. has also been pushing Taiwan to develop its asymmetric warfare strategy.
02:45But more of these weapons may be hard to come by, as the military also faces a 3 percent
02:50cut on funding for equipment and facilities, meaning that some of its key defense infrastructure
02:55could be compromised when threats from China are high and the country's biggest unofficial
03:00ally becomes harder to please.
03:02Yisen Chen and Tiffany Wong for Taiwan Plus.