President Lai Pledges to Raise Taiwan’s Defense Spending to Over 3% of GDP
Taiwan’s government aims to increase defense spending to at least 3 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) this year, President Lai Ching-te said on February 14.
At a news conference, President Lai stated that his administration would propose a special budget this year to increase the nation’s defense spending to more than 3 percent of GDP.
“Taiwan must firmly safeguard its national sovereignty, strengthen its resolve for self-defense, and bolster defense capabilities,” Lai said.
The president also pledged to intensify defense reforms and strengthen civil protections in response to growing threats from authoritarian regimes.
The U.S. has approved US$26.26 billion worth of arms sales to Taiwan over the past eight years, with US$18.76 billion taking place during Trump’s first term from 2017 to 2021.
Lai’s plans to increase defense spending — potentially leading to additional defense purchases from the U.S. — reflected Taiwan’s broader efforts to reduce the trade deficit with the United States.
Taiwan has been in the top 10 list of countries with which the U.S. has a trade deficit.
The plans to increase Taiwan’s defense spending followed Trump’s comments during his presidential campaign that Taiwan should increase its defense budget significantly and pay the U.S. for protection against China.
Over the past eight years under former President Tsai Ing-wen, Taiwan’s defense budgets were increased incrementally and significantly from NT$365.8 billion (US$11.16 billion) in 2016 to NT$606.8 billion in 2024. However, the spending still fell short of the 3 percent of GDP pledged by Tsai.
It remains uncertain whether Lai’s pledged defense spending hike — which still needs legislative approval — will materialize.
For fiscal year 2025, the Cabinet had earmarked NT$647 billion for national defense, amounting to 2.45 percent of GDP. However, NT$8.4 billion from the budget has been cut by the opposition-led legislature, with another NT$89.9 billion frozen.
The legislature has yet to finalize the central government budget plan after adopting numerous budget cuts and freezes.
References:
[1] Focus Taiwan
[2] Taipei Times
President Trump and Prime Minister Ishiba Reaffirm Commitment to Peace in Taiwan Strait
U.S. President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba reaffirmed the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait in a joint statement issued after their summit in Washington on February 7.
Describing cross-Taiwan Strait peace and stability as “an indispensable element of security and prosperity for the international community,” Trump and Ishiba “encouraged the peaceful resolution of cross-strait issues, and opposed any attempts to unilaterally change the status quo by force or coercion,” the U.S.-Japan Joint Leaders’ Statement said.
The two leaders also emphasized their support for Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations.
During their meeting, Trump and Ishiba “expressed their determination to continuously cooperate to realize a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
“As part of such cooperation, the two leaders intend to advance multilayered and aligned cooperation among like-minded countries, including Japan-Australia-India-U.S. (Quad), Japan-U.S.-Republic of Korea (ROK), Japan-U.S.-Australia, and Japan-U.S.-Philippines,” the statement said.
The U.S.-Japan joint statement released on February 7, which omitted any mention of the “One China policy,” might signal President Trump’s intention to decouple U.S.-China relations from Taiwan, according to Chen Shih-min, Associate Professor at National Taiwan University’s Department of Political Science.
Chen suggested that Trump might intend to use the “One China policy” as a bargaining chip in negotiations with China, rather than following policy frameworks he has inherited.
Decoupling U.S.-China relations from Taiwan would prevent the PRC from using the “One China policy” to influence U.S. policy toward Taiwan, Chen added.
Meanwhile, several Republican members of the U.S. Congress have recently introduced a resolution (H.Con.Res.8) urging Trump to abandon the “One China policy” and reestablish formal diplomatic ties between the U.S. and Taiwan.
Taiwan should closely monitor the Trump administration’s actions in this regard, Chen said.
References:
[1] Focus Taiwan
[2] Taipei Times
[3] Taipei Times
U.S. Navy Vessels Make First Taiwan Strait Transit of Trump’s Second Term
Two U.S. military vessels transited the Taiwan Strait from February 9 through early February 12, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense (MND) said in a statement.
Records show that this was the U.S. Navy’s first transit of the Taiwan Strait since President Donald Trump assumed office in January.
The two vessels sailed south through the Strait, the MND said, adding that it closely monitored nearby airspace and waters at the time and observed nothing unusual.
While the MND did not name the vessels, the U.S. Navy identified them as the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Ralph Johnson and the Pathfinder-class survey ship USNS Bowditch.
A U.S. military spokesperson stated that the two ships carried out a north-to-south transit.
“The transit occurred through a corridor in the Taiwan Strait that is beyond any coastal state’s territorial seas,” said U.S. Navy Commander Matthew Comer, a spokesperson at the U.S. military’s Indo-Pacific Command.
However, the U.S. 7th fleet did not publicize the passage via press release, as was standard during the previous Joe Biden administration.
The U.S. Navy, sometimes joined by allies, makes regular transits through the Taiwan Strait in what it calls freedom of navigation.
The last time a U.S. warship transited the Strait was on October 20, 2024, when the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Higgins, along with Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Vancouver, sailed through the body of water.
