Taiwan To Set Aside Extra $9 Billion To Boost Its Military

The Taiwanese government has recently proposed an extra defense spending of T$240 billion, which is equivalent to almost $9 billion over the next five years to further boost its military strength.

Taiwan's military and intelligence officials agree that this additional budget is an urgent need as the country faces an imminent threat from its fierce neighbor, China.

Even though Taiwanese President Tsai Ling-wen has made military modernization her top priority, the fact still remains that China's military might and sophistication are still superior.

On top of that, China has been steadily increasing its military and diplomatic pressures against the island nation to push it into subordination.

According to China, Taiwan is part of its jurisdiction and that it must reclaim it.

The wide gap between their military strength and the increased pressures from China was what compelled the government to put additional military spending as one of the year's urgent priorities.

The proposed additional budget will come on top of the planned T$471.7 billion military spending for next year.

The proposal has to go through the parliament's approval, and many analysts expect that it would face little to no objection since Tsai's party has a large majority in the parliament.

"The Chinese Communists have continued to invest heavily in national defense budgets, its military strength has grown rapidly, and it has frequently dispatched aircraft and ships to invade and harass our seas and airspace," Taiwan's Defense Ministry said.

The Defense Ministry added that in the face of a severe threat and a nation that wouldn't hesitate to attack Taiwan anytime, the government is always ready to mass-produce weapons and military equipment if needed for its own protection.

Defense Minister Wang Shin-lung said that even though the United States has already pledged that it would remain as a key supplier of weapons to the country, he said that Taiwan also aims to bolster its arms production capabilities by manufacturing weapons domestically.

Taiwan has always said it will defend itself from any possible threats, even without the aid of advanced nations such as the U.S. Also, it is well aware that it has no guarantee that the U.S. will come to its aid if ever it is invaded by China.