DEFENSE/Koo reaffirms 5% defense spending goal amid U.S. call for major hike

Taipei/Washington, Oct. 8 (CNA) Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) pledged Wednesday to carry out President Lai Ching-te's (賴清德) goal of raising Taiwan's defense spending to 5 percent of GDP, after a Pentagon nominee endorsed U.S. President Donald Trump's proposal for a 10 percent target.

At a U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee hearing in Washington on Tuesday, John Noh, the nominee for assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific security affairs, said he "strongly supports" Trump's campaign proposal last year for Taiwan to raise its defense spending to 10 percent of GDP.

"It was President Trump who said that Taiwan, which is an island facing an existential threat from the People's Liberation Army, from the Chinese military, should spend upwards of 10 percent of its GDP on defense. I strongly support that," Noh said.

He was responding to a question from Republican Senator Roger Wicker about U.S. arms deliveries to Taiwan under Presidential Drawdown Authority.

Noh, who is currently serving at the Pentagon as deputy assistant secretary for East Asia, added that while he applauds Taiwan's efforts to increase defense spending, "Taiwan absolutely needs to do its part -- spend more, and acquire the kind of asymmetric capabilities that will be most relevant in an invasion scenario."

Asked to comment, Koo explained to reporters that Taiwan's defense budget is determined based on the threats it faces and the need to strengthen its combat readiness.

His ministry's spending priorities focus on four main areas: developing asymmetric warfare capabilities, enhancing defense resilience, improving reserve force readiness, and countering gray-zone coercion, he said. All these measures require increased funding, he added.

Koo noted that Lai has pledged to gradually raise defense spending, with core national defense expenditures expected to exceed 3 percent of GDP next year and continue rising toward the 5 percent target. However, he said "overall fiscal conditions and capacity-building requirements must also be considered."

"The Ministry of National Defense (MND) will continue to strengthen Taiwan's self-defense capabilities. This has always been our consistent position and firm commitment, which we will demonstrate to the world," Koo said, without further elaborating on the budget issue.

Koo made the remarks before a legislative hearing on an NT$550 billion (US$18 billion) special budget aimed at boosting social and economic resilience. The plan includes NT$113.2 billion earmarked for hardening military communications systems, upgrading and maintaining facilities and infrastructure, and bolstering maritime defense.