Taiwan announces record defense budget

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te announced today that Taiwan will allocate a record 1.1225 trillion Taiwan dollars, or 35.2 billion US dollars (around 30.3 billion euros), to defense next year.

“Investing in national defense is investing in peace,” said the leader of the self-governing island, which is facing growing military pressure from China.

The planned defense spending would represent a major increase as Taiwan seeks to strengthen its military capabilities and improve its ability to respond to potential security threats, CE Report quotes STA.

Lai has repeatedly emphasized the importance of strengthening Taiwan’s defenses in the face of increasing military activity by China around the island. Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory and has not ruled out the use of force to bring it under its control.

The announcement comes as Taiwan continues to expand its defense capabilities, including investments in military equipment, infrastructure and preparedness.

Photo: Chat GPT