According to a Reuters report, Taiwan’s defence spending for the next year is to increase by 10.2%, with President Tsai Ing-wen proposing $15.42 billion in military spending for 2021, compared to the current budget of $13.11 billion.
In 2019, Taiwan’s cabinet increased the military spending by 8.3%, which was the largest increase since 2008; this surge has now been surpassed by the 2021 budget. Taiwan attributed its rise in military investment to growing tensions with China. Beijing is pressurising the democratic island to accept “political conditions” that threaten to “turn Taiwan into the next Hong Kong,” said Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu. The statement came at a press conference organised during the visit of the US Health Secretary Alex Azar, which marked the highest-level official meeting between the US and Taiwan since 1979.
Taiwan is becoming a critical flashpoint in China-US relations, with China opposing visits by US officials to Taiwan. Regarding the visit, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said: “People who play with fire will burn themselves.” Furthermore, Taiwan’s Air Force stated that “two Chinese warplanes briefly crossed the median line” of the Taiwan Strait a day after Secretary Azar landed in Taipei. These claims have been corroborated by reports that said that a Shenyang J-11 and a Chengdu J-10 briefly crossed into Taiwan’s airspace, but retreated after Taiwanese patrol planes issued radio warnings.
President Tsai has made modernisation of the armed forces a top priority of Taiwan’s government. The democratic island is currently in discussions with the US to acquire cruise missiles for coastal defence. Hsiao Bi-khim, a lawmaker from Taiwan, said, “We are facing an existential survival issue.” Hence, Bi-khim explained that Taiwan needs to expand its asymmetric capabilities to deter China.
In July, last year China warned it was “ready for war” if Taiwan made moves towards independence, and thus Taiwan’s continued policy of scaling up of military spending is a calculated effort towards protecting its national security.
Amid Chinese Threat, Taiwan Increases Defence Spending
Growing tensions with China pushed Taiwan to invest more heavily in its military.
August 13, 2020
Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen, left, walked past a Taiwan national flag during an offshore anti-terrorism drill last year in New Taipei City, Taiwan. SOURCE: CHIANG YING-YING/AP