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Taiwan increases defense budget due to China

2025-11-26 11:21:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Taiwan will present an additional defense budget worth $40 billion to emphasize its determination to defend itself in the face of the growing threat from China, President Lai Ching-te said.

China, which sees the self-governing island of Taiwan as part of its territory, has increased military and political pressure over the past five years to strengthen its territorial claims, which Taipei disputes.

As Taiwan faces calls from Washington to spend more on its defense, Lai said in August that he hoped to increase defense spending to 5 percent of GDP by 2030.

Unveiling the package worth $39.89 billion, Lai said history has proven that attempts to compromise in the face of aggression bring nothing but "slavery."

"There is no room for compromise when it comes to national security," he said during a press conference.

Lai, who first introduced the spending increase plan in an op-ed published in the Washington Post on Tuesday, said Taiwan is showing determination to defend itself.

" It is a battle between defending a democratic Taiwan and succumbing to becoming 'China's Taiwan,'" he stressed, adding that this is not simply an ideological clash or disagreement over "unification versus independence."

Lai had previously warned of additional defense budgets.

The de facto US ambassador to Taipei, Raymond Greene, wrote on Facebook that Washington supports "Taiwan's rapid acquisition of critical asymmetric capabilities."

"Today's announcement is a major step towards maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait by strengthening deterrence," he added.

Taiwan is modernizing its armed forces to push forward an "asymmetric" approach to warfare, so that its military - much smaller than China's - is more agile and has the capability for more powerful and targeted strikes.

For 2026, the Government plans for these expenditures to reach $30.3 billion, rising to 3.32% of GDP, and exceeding the 3% threshold for the first time since 2009, according to government data.

Speaking earlier in Beijing, a spokesman for China's Taiwan Affairs Office said Taiwan is allowing "external forces" to dictate its decisions.

" They squander funds that could be used to improve people's lives and develop the economy by buying weapons and bowing to foreign powers," spokesman Peng Qingen told reporters.

"This will only lead Taiwan into disaster."

The United States is legally obligated to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself, despite the fact that the two countries do not have formal diplomatic relations./ REL