Defense News

MND Press Release
Published at 16:00 on January 18, 2025

    The Ministry of National Defense explained today (Jan. 18) that, in the face of the increasing threats from the enemy and a severe security environment, the national defense budget is a crucial foundation for building R.O.C. armed forces, preparing for combat, deterring enemy invasions, and ensuring the safety of our citizens. The Ministry calls on legislators to oversee rationally and hopes to ensure that military personnel receive adequate resources and training, enabling them to stand firm against outnumbered adversaries and defend freedom, democracy, and national security together.

    The Ministry of National Defense stated that during the 2025 budget review process, the Ministry made every effort to communicate and explain in response to proposals from party caucuses and legislators. During the breakout review of the Foreign and National Defense Committee, by virtue of the "committee-dominated perspective" in the Legislative Yuan, the Ministry gained significant consensus from both governing and opposition legislators. Presently, the "party caucuses negotiation" made some new proposals, and some of them are related to the procurement of important weapons, which the Ministry seeks to clarify:

1. Submarines are a key capability for maintaining Taiwan Strait security and maritime shipping lanes, playing a crucial role in asymmetric warfare. Regarding the allocation of the 2 billion NTD budget this year, the Ministry's stance remains unchanged, and it is hoping for full approval and disbursing the funds after the prototype submarine passes testing. This demonstrates the government's support for the Indigenous Defense Submarine (IDS) and encourages international allies to support us continuously, strengthening Taiwan's defense capabilities. However, the proposed freeze of 1.8 billion NTD could hinder foreign governments' permission, reduce manufacturers' cooperating willingness, and result in the loss of specialized talent in shipbuilding, which would negatively impact the subsequent construction of submarines.
2. The key focus of national defense policy is to maintain national security. The budget is primarily used for procuring essential weapons and equipment, system upgrades, maintaining proper leading combat equipment, replenishing various training ammunition, purchasing fuel for aircraft and ships, and sustaining basic operations of the armed forces. During the previous committee budget review, a decision was made to reduce the budget by 4.8 billion NTD and freeze 6 billion NTD. Additional proposals have been made to freeze 70% of the operational budget (approximately 178.1 billion NTD) and 7.6 billion NTD for spare parts. These substantial cuts and freezes would be detrimental to the military's daily operations. It would reduce the ability to respond to actions made by the Chinese military aircraft and vessels in the gray zone, resulting in a lack of sufficient budgetary support for core combat and training missions.
3. Learning from the experience of the Russia-Ukraine war, the development of "drones" as an asymmetric warfare capability is a key national security policy of the government. By integrating industry development needs, establishing a drone industrial park can strengthen critical industry chains and deepen technological advancements. For the 2025 fiscal year, a budget of 76.25 million NTD was allocated, but 20% (15.25 million NTD) was frozen during the committee review. Now, a new proposal is made to cut the entire budget. To accelerate the development of the drone industry, the Ministry hopes the Legislative Yuan will support and approve the budget.
4. According to Article 9 of the All-Out Defense Education Act, the Ministry of National Defense is the competent authority for national defense education and is responsible for producing programs broadcast on mass media to foster national defense awareness among the public. Additionally, talent recruitment is fundamental to building military strength. For the 2025 fiscal year, a budget of 47.5 million NTD was allocated for media policy promotion. However, 60% of this budget has already been reduced, and there is now a proposal to cut the entirety. To ensure the budget's legal allocation and strengthen talent recruitment, bringing new blood into the military, the Ministry hopes that the related budget will be maintained.

The Ministry of National Defense emphasizes that China's defense budget has reached new record highs recently, making the regional situation and Taiwan Strait security threats increasingly severe. The only way for Taiwan's military to achieve its goals of military readiness and defense is through the effective use of steadily growing financial resources, with the support of the people and the Legislative Yuan. This will also send a strong message of self-defense determination to the international community. The Ministry calls on the public and the legislature to provide support, ensuring that various policies are implemented as scheduled.