Overview
- Lawmakers on March 6 unanimously sent rival special defense budgets from the Cabinet, KMT and TPP to the Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee and the Finance Committee for review.
- The DPP government seeks NT$1.25 trillion over 2026–2033 to pair major U.S. purchases with expanded indigenous programs, including large drone production and the T‑Dome air defense system.
- The KMT raised its proposal to a NT$380 billion cap focused on eight U.S. sales notified in December and insists on separating government‑to‑government deals from commercial procurement for oversight.
- The TPP offers a NT$400 billion plan funding five systems and reserving NT$88.1 billion for potential new U.S. sales, reflecting divisions over scope and pacing of outlays.
- Defense Minister Wellington Koo rejected the opposition cap, a 2028 completion deadline and excluding commercial channels, warning such limits would halt projects and create capability gaps, as a TPP motion advanced to authorize signing LOAs by March 15 for M109A7 howitzers, Javelin and TOW missiles.