By Yimou Lee and Ben Blanchard
TAIPEI, Feb 11 (Reuters) – The delay in passing a $40 billion special military budget risks a “rupture” in the joint line of defence against China, Taiwan’s defence minister said on Wednesday, as President Lai Ching-te urged the opposition-controlled parliament to approve the spending measure.
Lai last year proposed the defence boost to counter China, which views the island as its own territory. But the opposition has refused to review the proposal and instead advanced its own, less expensive proposals, which only fund some U.S. weapons.
The main opposition party Kuomintang (KMT), whose vice chairman visited Beijing last week, said it supports defence spending but will not sign “blank cheques” and has a right to fully scrutinise the legislation, blaming Lai for the impasse.
Speaking to reporters at the presidential office, Lai said he had never asked lawmakers to pass the spending unconditionally, reiterating that the government was happy to provide a detailed explanation on its plans.
“But national defence, so closely tied to national security, sovereignty, and our very survival, should be an area where we unite and present a common front to the outside,” Lai said.
Countries including Japan, South Korea and the Philippines are all boosting their defence spending, he added.
U.S.-TAIWAN TALKS
Speaking at the same news conference, where the heads of the army, navy and air force all attended, Defence Minister Wellington Koo said the government had had intensive talks with the U.S. on what weapons Taiwan needed.
“In the Indo-Pacific, especially among the countries along the first island chain, Taiwan plays a uniquely critical, almost fated, role,” Koo said, referring to an area that stretches from Japan down through Taiwan and into the Philippines.
“We do not want Taiwan to become the rupture in the Indo-Pacific collective deterrence posture.”
Wu Tsung-hsien, head of the KMT’s Culture and Communications Committee, said later that his party has always supported a strong defence for Taiwan, but the purchased weapons should be “suitable” and cost-effective.
“We are not trying to make ‘American daddy’ happy,” he said. “What we want is to make Taiwan happy.”
The U.S. is Taiwan’s most important international backer, despite the lack of formal diplomatic ties, and arms sales to Taipei are a constant source of friction between Beijing and Washington.
The U.S. has backed the $40 billion spending plan, and in December the Trump administration announced $11.1 billion in arms sales to Taiwan, the largest ever U.S. weapons package for the island.
Speaking in Beijing on Wednesday, Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, said it was up to China how to “resolve” the Taiwan issue, and the U.S. should “stop interfering in China’s internal affairs”.
Shortly after Lai spoke, Taiwan’s defence ministry said it had detected 11 Chinese military aircraft – including nuclear-capable H-6K bombers – operating to the island’s east and southwest for long-distance training in the Pacific Ocean.
China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control. Lai rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims.
Lai said Taiwan’s strengthening of its defence is not because it wants to invade anyone, but because it wants to safeguard its way of life.
U.S. lawmakers have pushed for Taiwan’s parliament to pass the spending plans, and some have criticised the opposition for blocking Lai’s plans and cosying up to Beijing.
Lai said Taiwan could fall off the priority list for U.S. arms deliveries and affect the island’s credibility.
“China’s threat is becoming increasingly serious. Taiwan’s defence budget must be passed smoothly. This represents Taiwan’s resolve, and it also shows that Taiwan is fulfilling its responsibilities as a member of the international community,” Lai said.
(Reporting by Yimou Lee and Ben Blanchard; Editing by Christopher Cushing, Lincoln Feast and Thomas Derpinghaus)
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