Legislative Yuan to negotiate special defense ordinance again next week; KMT reiterates three demands
Legislative Yuan President Han Kuo-yu will convene another negotiation next week on the draft special defense ordinance. The KMT insists on transparency, government-to-government channels, and official U.S. LOAs as prerequisites for approving the massive military procurement budget.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 18, 2026 at 18:00
- 🔍 Collected: April 18, 2026 at 18:31 (30 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 18, 2026 at 18:53 (21 min after Collected)
Central News Agency
(CNA Reporter Wang Cheng-chung, Taipei, 18th) Legislative Yuan President Han Kuo-yu will once again convene a ruling and opposition party caucus negotiation next week on the draft of the special defense ordinance. The Kuomintang (KMT) stated today that they demand "transparency, official channels, and receipts." Military procurement items must undergo a complete project building process. They insist on a "government-to-government" channel to eliminate kickback scandals and insist on obtaining an official Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) from the U.S. before the Legislative Yuan can conduct a substantive review.
Legislative Yuan President Han Kuo-yu convened a ruling and opposition party caucus negotiation on the draft of the special defense ordinance on the 15th, but no consensus was reached. Han requested the Foreign and National Defense Committee to arrange a special report by the Ministry of National Defense on the 20th. He will convene another party caucus negotiation and asked the ruling and opposition caucuses to communicate beforehand regarding procurement items and funding.
The KMT Culture and Communications Committee issued a press release today pointing out that the KMT emphasizes "transparency, official channels, and receipts." Military procurement items must have a complete project building process; they insist on a "government-to-government" channel to eliminate kickback scandals; and they insist on obtaining an official LOA from the U.S. before the Legislative Yuan can conduct a substantive review.
The KMT stated that although the U.S. suggested Taiwan's defense budget should account for 5% of its GDP, Taiwan's defense budget has already doubled from NT$450 billion to nearly NT$1 trillion, reaching 3.32% of GDP by 2026. Looking at neighboring allies, such as South Korea (2.42% of GDP) and Japan (2% of GDP), neither has reached Taiwan's proportion. Taiwan's current proportion fully demonstrates its determination to defend itself.
The KMT pointed out that the Lai administration proposed a special military procurement budget of NT$1.25 trillion. This budget is not included in the general annual budget, so the crowding-out effect is not apparent in the short term, but it will eventually be paid for by all citizens in the future. It is expected to severely crowd out resources for education and social welfare, which is tantamount to sacrificing the future of the next generation. "National defense built on the crowding out of people's livelihoods is not true national security."
The KMT expressed that the trillion-dollar military procurement proposed by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government has only a "two-page" explanation, with no unit prices and no delivery schedules. It is like asking the Legislative Yuan to sign a "blank check," which is unacceptable. There must be rigorous project building procedures, and official LOAs must be obtained before budgets can be allocated. This is not a matter of being pro-U.S. or anti-U.S., but about strictly adhering to fiscal discipline.
The KMT pointed out its refusal of the black box of commercial procurement, insisting on a "government-to-government" military procurement model where the government directly interfaces, and the selling country provides performance guarantees. This is open and transparent, leaving no room for kickbacks and commissions. In contrast, commercial procurement models usually involve facing individual arms dealers. If goods are not delivered or are delayed, there is often nowhere to seek recourse, and the opaque amounts easily lead to malpractice.
The KMT stated that there have been cases in previous military procurements where "the money was paid, but weapon deliveries were severely delayed," such as the multi-year delay of F-16 fighter jets. A report by a U.S. congressional task force noted that a total of 19 weapons face severe delivery delays, with a total value of up to NT$690 billion. Previous goods have not yet been fully delivered, yet now there is a rush to push through a special budget of over NT$1 trillion.
The KMT pointed out that their advocated "380 billion + N" is based on the NT$380 billion earmarked in the 8 arms sales cases officially notified to Taiwan by the U.S. government at the end of last year, continuously adding N on top. The N refers to the portion that has obtained an official U.S. government LOA. As long as subsequent items obtain LOAs, they will be fully supported. This is a flexible procurement mechanism that balances multiple aspects, and definitely not the external misunderstanding of "only 380 billion."
(CNA Reporter Wang Cheng-chung, Taipei, 18th) Legislative Yuan President Han Kuo-yu will once again convene a ruling and opposition party caucus negotiation next week on the draft of the special defense ordinance. The Kuomintang (KMT) stated today that they demand "transparency, official channels, and receipts." Military procurement items must undergo a complete project building process. They insist on a "government-to-government" channel to eliminate kickback scandals and insist on obtaining an official Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) from the U.S. before the Legislative Yuan can conduct a substantive review.
Legislative Yuan President Han Kuo-yu convened a ruling and opposition party caucus negotiation on the draft of the special defense ordinance on the 15th, but no consensus was reached. Han requested the Foreign and National Defense Committee to arrange a special report by the Ministry of National Defense on the 20th. He will convene another party caucus negotiation and asked the ruling and opposition caucuses to communicate beforehand regarding procurement items and funding.
The KMT Culture and Communications Committee issued a press release today pointing out that the KMT emphasizes "transparency, official channels, and receipts." Military procurement items must have a complete project building process; they insist on a "government-to-government" channel to eliminate kickback scandals; and they insist on obtaining an official LOA from the U.S. before the Legislative Yuan can conduct a substantive review.
The KMT stated that although the U.S. suggested Taiwan's defense budget should account for 5% of its GDP, Taiwan's defense budget has already doubled from NT$450 billion to nearly NT$1 trillion, reaching 3.32% of GDP by 2026. Looking at neighboring allies, such as South Korea (2.42% of GDP) and Japan (2% of GDP), neither has reached Taiwan's proportion. Taiwan's current proportion fully demonstrates its determination to defend itself.
The KMT pointed out that the Lai administration proposed a special military procurement budget of NT$1.25 trillion. This budget is not included in the general annual budget, so the crowding-out effect is not apparent in the short term, but it will eventually be paid for by all citizens in the future. It is expected to severely crowd out resources for education and social welfare, which is tantamount to sacrificing the future of the next generation. "National defense built on the crowding out of people's livelihoods is not true national security."
The KMT expressed that the trillion-dollar military procurement proposed by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government has only a "two-page" explanation, with no unit prices and no delivery schedules. It is like asking the Legislative Yuan to sign a "blank check," which is unacceptable. There must be rigorous project building procedures, and official LOAs must be obtained before budgets can be allocated. This is not a matter of being pro-U.S. or anti-U.S., but about strictly adhering to fiscal discipline.
The KMT pointed out its refusal of the black box of commercial procurement, insisting on a "government-to-government" military procurement model where the government directly interfaces, and the selling country provides performance guarantees. This is open and transparent, leaving no room for kickbacks and commissions. In contrast, commercial procurement models usually involve facing individual arms dealers. If goods are not delivered or are delayed, there is often nowhere to seek recourse, and the opaque amounts easily lead to malpractice.
The KMT stated that there have been cases in previous military procurements where "the money was paid, but weapon deliveries were severely delayed," such as the multi-year delay of F-16 fighter jets. A report by a U.S. congressional task force noted that a total of 19 weapons face severe delivery delays, with a total value of up to NT$690 billion. Previous goods have not yet been fully delivered, yet now there is a rush to push through a special budget of over NT$1 trillion.
The KMT pointed out that their advocated "380 billion + N" is based on the NT$380 billion earmarked in the 8 arms sales cases officially notified to Taiwan by the U.S. government at the end of last year, continuously adding N on top. The N refers to the portion that has obtained an official U.S. government LOA. As long as subsequent items obtain LOAs, they will be fully supported. This is a flexible procurement mechanism that balances multiple aspects, and definitely not the external misunderstanding of "only 380 billion."