Huang Kuo-chang: TPP will not interfere in KMT's arms procurement discussions; US should promptly announce second wave of arms sales
Regarding the internal disagreements within the Kuomintang over the special military budget, Taiwan People's Party Chairman Huang Kuo-chang stated that as independent parties, they respect the KMT's internal discussions and will not overly interfere. He also urged the US government to promptly announce the details of the second wave of arms sales if there is a high consensus between the US government and Congress on supporting Taiwan's defense.
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- 📰 Published: May 1, 2026 at 12:52
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Central News Agency
(Central News Agency reporter Wang Cheng-chung, Taipei, 1st) Regarding the internal disagreements within the Kuomintang (KMT) over the special military budget, Taiwan People's Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang said today that both are independent political parties, and the TPP respects the KMT's internal communications and discussions and will not overly interfere.
Legislative Yuan President Han Kuo-yu will convene cross-party negotiations on the special national defense bill again on the 6th. The KMT central committee insists on a version of NT$380 billion + N, but many within the party hope to increase it to NT$800 billion. The party caucus previously held a meeting but failed to reach a consensus. KMT Vice Chairman Ji Lin-lian's threat to expel Legislative Yuan President Han Kuo-yu, who was rumored to support the NT$800 billion plan, also sparked controversy.
Huang Kuo-chang stated before attending the "TPP May 1st Labor Forum" this morning and being interviewed by the media that it is normal for there to be different views on a major issue like arms procurement. He believes the KMT will communicate and discuss healthily, and through internal democratic procedures, will eventually form a consistent view.
Huang Kuo-chang said that the TPP respects the KMT's internal communications and discussions and will not overly interfere.
When asked if the TPP would agree if the KMT ultimately insists on the NT$380 billion + N version, Huang Kuo-chang pointed out that the TPP has also been continuously communicating and discussing arms procurement, humbly listening to outside opinions, and tracking the latest changes in figures. For example, for the publicly announced M109 self-propelled howitzer system, the Ministry of National Defense initially submitted a request for NT$137.5 billion to the Legislative Yuan, but the US Letter of Offer and Acceptance became NT$81 billion, and the amount on the government procurement website became over NT$70 billion.
Huang Kuo-chang stated that this is the question the TPP has been asking when discussing how much budget to allocate for the special arms procurement bill. If there is a difference of tens of billions between the specific procurement amount in the Ministry of National Defense's report to the Legislative Yuan and the figures disclosed on the government procurement website, "I ask the Lai Ching-te government, on what basis can you say that NT$1.25 trillion cannot be reduced?"
Regarding Ji Lin-lian's threat to recommend expelling Han Kuo-yu from the party, Huang Kuo-chang reiterated the TPP's stance, stating that the TPP is not suitable for overly intervening in the KMT's internal democratic procedures. Although the KMT and TPP cooperate on some policies and even local elections, they are both independent political parties and respect the operation of each party's internal democratic procedures.
Huang Kuo-chang pointed out that the best way is for the US government to promptly announce the content and items of the second wave of arms sales. If the US executive and legislative branches have such a high consensus on supporting Taiwan's defense, they should promptly announce the second wave of arms sales instead of deliberately delaying it until after the Trump-Xi meeting. He hopes the US will sincerely treat Taiwan as a democratic ally, not as a bargaining chip in the US-China rivalry. (Editor: Wan Shu-chang) 1150501
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(Central News Agency reporter Wang Cheng-chung, Taipei, 1st) Regarding the internal disagreements within the Kuomintang (KMT) over the special military budget, Taiwan People's Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang said today that both are independent political parties, and the TPP respects the KMT's internal communications and discussions and will not overly interfere.
Legislative Yuan President Han Kuo-yu will convene cross-party negotiations on the special national defense bill again on the 6th. The KMT central committee insists on a version of NT$380 billion + N, but many within the party hope to increase it to NT$800 billion. The party caucus previously held a meeting but failed to reach a consensus. KMT Vice Chairman Ji Lin-lian's threat to expel Legislative Yuan President Han Kuo-yu, who was rumored to support the NT$800 billion plan, also sparked controversy.
Huang Kuo-chang stated before attending the "TPP May 1st Labor Forum" this morning and being interviewed by the media that it is normal for there to be different views on a major issue like arms procurement. He believes the KMT will communicate and discuss healthily, and through internal democratic procedures, will eventually form a consistent view.
Huang Kuo-chang said that the TPP respects the KMT's internal communications and discussions and will not overly interfere.
When asked if the TPP would agree if the KMT ultimately insists on the NT$380 billion + N version, Huang Kuo-chang pointed out that the TPP has also been continuously communicating and discussing arms procurement, humbly listening to outside opinions, and tracking the latest changes in figures. For example, for the publicly announced M109 self-propelled howitzer system, the Ministry of National Defense initially submitted a request for NT$137.5 billion to the Legislative Yuan, but the US Letter of Offer and Acceptance became NT$81 billion, and the amount on the government procurement website became over NT$70 billion.
Huang Kuo-chang stated that this is the question the TPP has been asking when discussing how much budget to allocate for the special arms procurement bill. If there is a difference of tens of billions between the specific procurement amount in the Ministry of National Defense's report to the Legislative Yuan and the figures disclosed on the government procurement website, "I ask the Lai Ching-te government, on what basis can you say that NT$1.25 trillion cannot be reduced?"
Regarding Ji Lin-lian's threat to recommend expelling Han Kuo-yu from the party, Huang Kuo-chang reiterated the TPP's stance, stating that the TPP is not suitable for overly intervening in the KMT's internal democratic procedures. Although the KMT and TPP cooperate on some policies and even local elections, they are both independent political parties and respect the operation of each party's internal democratic procedures.
Huang Kuo-chang pointed out that the best way is for the US government to promptly announce the content and items of the second wave of arms sales. If the US executive and legislative branches have such a high consensus on supporting Taiwan's defense, they should promptly announce the second wave of arms sales instead of deliberately delaying it until after the Trump-Xi meeting. He hopes the US will sincerely treat Taiwan as a democratic ally, not as a bargaining chip in the US-China rivalry. (Editor: Wan Shu-chang) 1150501
Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is the power to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency "First-hand News" APP to stay updated with the latest news.
The text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.