Taiwan’s military will continue to be streamlined into a lean and highly effective force, the ROC Ministry of National Defense said May 19.
The MND’s comments came in the wake of a new U.S. report on mainland China’s rapid military development. The ministry also urged Washington to continue selling Taipei needed defense hardware so as to maintain peace in the Taiwan Strait.
The Pentagon report, which indicates that Taiwan remains a focus of mainland China’s military buildup, serves as a reminder that the island must maintain effective military preparedness as a deterrent and that the U.S. plays a key role in terms of Taiwan’s security, the MND said.
Over the past 23 years, the MND pointed out, Beijing has rapidly modernized its armed forces, gradually tipping the military balance of power in the strait against Taipei. Besides beefing up its forces for possible military conflict with the island, mainland China has also been making preparations aimed at preventing the U.S. or any of Taiwan’s other allies from intervening in the event of such a clash, the ministry said.
In streamlining its forces, the MND said, the military will follow President Ma Ying-jeou’s three-pronged defense of institutionalizing cross-strait relations, increasing Taiwan’s contributions to international development, and combining national defense and diplomacy.
The armed forces will employ innovative and asymmetrical thinking to consolidate defenses and provide an effective deterrent to discourage mainland China from considering the option of military force, the ministry explained.
The MND also expressed its appreciation for the U.S. House of Representatives’ vote late last week in favor of pressing the administration of President Barack Obama to sell Taiwan 66 advanced F-16 C/D fighter jets to close the growing military imbalance in the strait.
Late last year, the U.S. approved an arms package to Taiwan that included the upgrading of the island’s fleet of F-16 A/B fighters.
The ministry said the military would carry out a comprehensive review of costs, security changes in the region, and ROC and regional defense needs in planning for the procurement of a new generation of combat fighters to maintain effective air defenses for Taiwan. (SB-THN)