Taiwan’s cabinet approved a supplementary defense budget on Thursday that pushes the island’s total military spending past NT $1 trillion for the first time in its history.
The supplemental package adds NT $145.7 billion after opposition lawmakers had already gutted roughly a third of the NT $1.25 trillion the government originally requested for an eight-year defense plan. At current exchange rates, near NT $0.0315 to the dollar, the trillion-dollar total comes out to about $31.6 billion. That puts Taiwan’s defense spending at 3.83 percent of GDP for the year.
“There can be no gap in national defense,” the cabinet said in a statement. “National security cannot wait, the defence budget cannot wait, and defence self-reliance cannot wait either.”
The new money restores funding that opposition lawmakers had stripped from domestically built weapons programs, including the Strong Bow medium-altitude anti-ballistic missile system. Strong Bow is designed to layer on top of Taiwan’s existing short-range interceptors, and its makers say the radar can spot incoming enemy missiles at greater range than the American-made Patriot system.
The budget also funds more drones and counter-drone systems, along with classified projects the government has not disclosed publicly.
Lai frames spending as deterrence
Taiwanese President William Lai Ching-te defended the higher spending earlier in the week.
“Investing in defence is investing in peace; we will continue to build a more solid defence force to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the region,” Lai said.
He added that the increase “demonstrates to the international community Taiwan’s determination to strengthen its self-defense capabilities.”
Beijing responds with threats
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office attacked the move, saying it would “recklessly incite cross-strait confrontation and antagonism while lavishly squandering the people’s hard-earned money.”
Beijing accused Lai of trying to “resist reunification through force,” and warned that Taiwanese leaders “overestimating their own strength” would “bring profound disaster to the people of Taiwan.”
Washington wants more
Even at nearly 4 percent of GDP, Taiwan’s spending falls short of what the Trump administration has been pushing for. President Donald Trump and Undersecretary of War for Policy Elbridge Colby have floated targets as high as 10 percent of GDP. The American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto U.S. consulate in Taipei, said at the start of 2026 that it wants to see Taiwan reach at least 5 percent of GDP in defense spending.
