Taiwanese leader says increased defense aims to “stop a war”

Taiwan seeks to “stop a war” by increasing defence spending, said today the island leader, at a time when China exerts military pressure to assert territorial claims.

“ Our goal, by increasing investments in national defence, is not to provoke, but to prevent a war,” said President Lai Ching-te, in a speech given on the occasion of Taiwan National Day, which is celebrated today.

The 23 million inhabitants of Taiwan live under the constant threat of an attack from China, which insists that the island is part of its territory and does not exclude the use of force to attach it.

The successive Taiwanese governments have increased military spending over the past decade as Taiwan improves its ability to avoid a possible Chinese attack and demonstrate to the United States — which provides military support to the island — that takes its own defence seriously.

The Lai Government has set a record amount of 1.1 billion new Taiwanese dollars (EUR 30.75 billion) for defence expenditure in 2027, representing more than 3% of gross domestic product (GDP).

Taiwanese fighter planes and two Chinook helicopters, carrying huge Taiwanese flags, flew over the capital, Taipei today, while thousands of people, including foreign diplomats, gathered in front of the Presidential Palace to attend a military parade, dance shows and Lai's speech.

The celebrations commemorate the 115th anniversary of the fall of the Qing dynasty in China and the subsequent founding of the Republic of China.

The current dispute between Beijing and Taiwan dates back to the civil war that opposed the nationalist forces of Chiang Kai-shek, who took refuge on the island in 1949 after being defeated by the Communist fighters of Mao Tse-Tung.