“No country will be more determined in safeguarding Taiwan’s future than our own,” Lai said — a comment that follows President Donald Trump saying, while campaigning last year, that the self-governed archipelago “should pay” for US protection from Chinese military aggression.
Lai’s commentary comes as Taiwan sits front and centre in a spat between Beijing and Tokyo that has drawn in the US. Japan’s Sanae Takaichi recently angered Beijing by becoming the first sitting prime minister in decades to publicly link a Taiwan Strait crisis to a potential deployment of troops from her nation.In an hour-long phone call with Trump on Monday, Chinese leader Xi Jinping seized on the dispute with Japan to assert China’s sovereignty over Taiwan — and possibly shape US policy in its favour. Hours later, Takaichi said that Trump had reached out to brief her on the conversation with Xi and reaffirm ties with one of the US’s most important allies in Asia.
The commentary in the Washington Post marks the latest example of Lai turning to American media outlets to get his point across to the US. That’s difficult for leaders in Taiwan, given that China objects to nations it has official ties with having contact with Taipei.
Earlier this year, he wrote in a commentary for Bloomberg that his government was committed to cutting trade imbalances with the US by purchasing more American energy, agriculture and other industrial goods.While campaigning in 2023, he pledged in the Wall Street Journal to maintain the status quo with China if elected, a stance intended to reassure voters and the US that he can be trusted to handle a difficult relationship with Beijing.
Lai’s comments on extra defence spending effectively confirm a figure unveiled last month. Back then, Taiwanese lawmaker Wang Ting-yu, chair of the foreign affairs and defence committee, said the special military budget could reach NT$1.3 trillion ($42.5 billion).
The extra defence funding is part of Lai’s push to raise military spending to 5% of gross domestic product by 2030 to counter China, which claims the self-governed archipelago as part of its territory and has vowed to bring it under Beijing’s control someday, by force if necessary.
Taiwan’s special budgets supplement the regular annual spending plan, providing funding for emergencies or projects that require years to complete. In the past, Taiwan had used the money to buy weapons, including fighter jets and missile systems.
Lai announced in October that Taiwan will speed up development of a comprehensive air defence system dubbed T-Dome that is expected to integrate domestically and US-made weapons.
The special budget proposal will likely face obstacles once Lai’s cabinet formally proposes it, given that it requires the approval of the legislature, which is controlled by the opposition. The main opposition party, the Kuomintang, favours developing closer ties with China, saying this would reduce cross-strait tensions.
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