TAIPEI, Taiwan - Taiwan’s ministry of national defense is warning a potential cut in the island’s defense budget for 2025 would have grave consequences.
Recently passed amendments to a fiscal planning law could reduce the defense budget by 28%, or NT$80 billion (US$2.44 billion), which would “have a serious impact on the national military’s buildup and preparedness,” the ministry said in a statement issued late Wednesday.
Last week, Taiwan’s opposition parties, which hold a majority in parliament, passed the amended Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures that if implemented would see a NT$375.3 billion (US$11.47 billion) reduction in the central government’s overall budget.
The current defense budget is approximately 2.4% of Taiwan’s gross domestic product, or GDP, but it would shrink to less than 2% after the cut, “at a time when every country in the region is increasing its defense spending,” said the ministry.
Previously, the Taiwanese government proposed a record high military budget that accounted for approximately 2.5% of the GDP for 2025 but that increase now seems unlikely.
“It may create a negative image in the international community that we … lack the determination to defend ourselves,” the ministry said.
The national defense budget should be decided in accordance with “the threats posed by the enemy and the need to build up the military and prepare for war,” it said.
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China has been ramping up military activities around Taiwan, which it considers a Chinese province that should be “reunified” with the mainland, by force if necessary.
An analyst said that in the face of constant cross-Strait threats, Taiwan needs to increase its defense budget, as well as social and economic resilience.
“We need to demonstrate that we’re willing to fight,” said Kuan-chen Lee, associate research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, a government think tank.
“Taiwan must improve military capabilities and make war more costly for China,” Lee told Radio Free Asia.
The budget cut would “make it impossible to continuously upgrade major weapons and equipment, and it would be difficult to make payments for contracted purchases,” warned the defense ministry.
C-130 fleet upgrade
On Wednesday, the Taiwanese Defense Mission to the United States issued a public notice to invite tenders to upgrade its existing C-130 military transport aircraft for an estimated NT$126 million (US$3.85 million).
The money will be allocated to purchase new propellers, according to the procurement notice.
The acquisition is part of a six-year overhaul project, called Taiwu Mountain III, to be carried out between 2025-2030 and expected to cost NT$10 billion (US$ 305.86 million).
Taiwan’s air force has a fleet of 20 U.S.-made C-130s bought in the 1980s that serve as the main transport aircraft for the armed forces.
The upgrade would ensure that the aircraft have integrated cockpits and improved sea rescue capabilities.
Edited by Mike Firn.