Pres. Tsai Proposes USD8.7bn Boost To Defence Spending To Counter China

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen has announced that her administration plans to invest an additional TWD240bn (USD8.7bn) in Taiwan's defence capabilities over the next five years, on top of the TWD472bn (USD17bn) already planned to be spent in 2021.

• Tsai stated that the additional military expenditure was required to deal with the 'severe threat' posed by neighbouring China.
• The planned spending increase should comfortably pass in the Legislative Yuan (parliament), where Tsai's Democratic Progressive Party holds a wide majority over the opposition Kuomintang.
• Following a Cabinet meeting earlier this week, the Taiwanese Defence Ministry released a statement saying that "The Chinese Communists have continued to invest heavily in national defence budgets, its military strength has grown rapidly, and it has frequently dispatched aircraft and ships to invade and harass our seas and airspace. In the face of severe threats from the enemy, the nation's military is actively engaged in military building and preparation work and it is urgent to obtain mature and rapid mass production weapons and equipment in a short period of time."