KMT pressures lawmakers on defense bill, TPP undecided

Taipei, May 1 (CNA) Taiwan's main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) on Friday said a special defense budget bill sponsored by its caucus has a "binding political force" on its lawmakers, as the smaller Taiwan People's Party (TPP) deliberates what stance to take on the issue.

The KMT issued a statement in response to media personality Jaw Shau-kong's (趙少康) recent criticisms of the KMT headquarters for allegedly attempting to sway its lawmakers' support for a proposal put forward by KMT Legislator Hsu Chiao-hsin (徐巧芯) to sponsor an alternative NT$800 billion (US$25.28 billion) bill to fund American equipment, in anticipation of future sales packages.

• KMT deputy chair attacks Speaker Han over special defense budget

The Chinese-language Liberty Times on Wednesday reported that KMT Chairperson Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) and KMT caucus convener Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) had conducted a call campaign this week targeting KMT lawmakers.

The campaign, the Liberty Times reported, was aimed at relaying the headquarters' demand that they support the caucus's bill earmarking "NT$380 billion + n" instead of Hsu's proposal, which is being discussed during cross-caucus talks.

In its statement, the KMT said that the party headquarters having a say in bills sponsored by its caucus is "the norm."

In the case of the special defense budget bill, it was drafted in consultation with the KMT's think tank and passed during a caucus meeting on March 5, and therefore possesses "dual legitimacy," according to the statement.

Because the bill represents the caucus's collective decision, it has a "binding political force" on its members, the KMT said, without specifying what consequences its lawmakers would face if they defied the party headquarters.

The statement also rejected Jaw's criticism that the caucus's bill leaves no room for funding future U.S. arms sales.

The "+ n" design, along with an incidental resolution sponsored by the caucus, addresses future arms sales, under which new budget proposals based on received letters of acceptance are directly sent to committee review, it said.

Separately on Friday, TPP Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) said the party remained undecided over which bill to back.

"The TPP has been discussing the arms sales. We're humbly listening to the opinions of all sides and tracking the different numbers that have been proposed," Huang told reporters in Taipei.

The TPP's eight legislative seats represent a critical minority and will be a determining factor for which bill eventually clears the legislative floor.

The TPP respects and will not overly concern itself with the KMT's "internal discussions," Huang said.

He added that the best solution to the current deadlock over the defense budget is for the U.S. government to approve a long-anticipated second arms sales package for Taiwan.

"If the U.S. executive and legislative branches truly have such a strong consensus in support of Taiwan's defense, they should promptly announce a second round of arms sales, rather than deliberately delaying it until after a Trump-Xi meeting," Huang said.

"We hope the United States will sincerely treat Taiwan as a democratic ally, not as a bargaining chip in U.S.-China negotiations," he said.