Presidential Office Hopes Legislature Will Continue to Complete Full Defense System, Not Omit Key Capabilities
Presidential Office spokesperson Kuo Ya-hui expressed that while welcoming the third reading passage of the special defense act, she hopes the legislature will continue to complete the full defense system by addressing unpassed critical items such as drones and defense supply chain establishment, emphasizing the urgent need for Taiwan's defense strengthening.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 8, 2026 at 23:23
- 🔍 Collected: May 8, 2026 at 23:31 (8 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 9, 2026 at 00:02 (30 min after Collected)
Central News Agency
(Central News Agency reporter Wen Kuei-Hsiang, Taipei, 8th) Presidential Office spokesperson Kuo Ya-hui stated tonight that after nearly six months of communication, the special defense act has progressed, allowing multiple military procurements, including the HIMARS multiple rocket launcher system, to finally move forward. She hopes that cross-party consensus in the legislature, building on this first step, will continue to complete the integrity of the entire defense system, ensuring no key capabilities are omitted.
The Legislative Yuan today, after a vote, passed the 'Special Act for the Procurement of National Security and Strengthening Asymmetric Combat Capabilities Plan' on its third reading, which concerns military procurements from the U.S. A total budget cap of NT$780 billion was allocated, with NT$300 billion for the first wave of U.S. military procurements and NT$480 billion for the second wave.
Kuo Ya-hui stated tonight that since the special act was sent to the legislature last November, after nearly six months of effort, thanks to the continuous communication between the executive team, including the Ministry of National Defense, and the legislature, the procurement of multiple critical equipment, including the HIMARS multiple rocket launcher system, has finally begun to advance, taking a difficult first step.
However, she said that considering this act covers seven major defense capabilities, which are of holistic, urgent, and inseparable importance, she hopes that cross-party consensus in the legislature, building on this first step, will continue to complete the integrity of the entire defense system, ensuring no key capabilities are omitted.
Kuo Ya-hui pointed out that the special act for strengthening defense resilience and asymmetric combat capabilities covers seven major defense capabilities, which constitute a mutually supporting and interconnected defense system. Proposing it as a special act precisely considers the urgency, importance, and inseparability of these capabilities for Taiwan's defense.
She stated that while the legislative completion of the U.S. military procurement portion of the special act today indeed addresses the urgent need for follow-up procurement of many major military items, several highly necessary and urgent items were not simultaneously passed. These include indigenous and commissioned drone production, establishment of a defense supply chain, command and control and decision-making assistance systems, and indigenous defense commissioning and joint Taiwan-U.S. R&D. These are all critical links for strengthening national defense at this moment and brook no delay.
Kuo Ya-hui said that the importance of these items has not diminished because of the partial passage of the act; their urgency remains. The President hopes that cross-party consensus in the legislature will redouble efforts to complete the entire defense system for the subsequent items in the shortest possible time.
Kuo Ya-hui said that there should be no blue-green political differences in the goal of strengthening self-defense and protecting the country and its citizens. Especially in neighboring countries like South Korea, Japan, and the Philippines, in response to growing threats including from China, important military strengthening plans and budgets have been unanimously passed by both ruling and opposition parties in the shortest time. She hopes that cross-party consensus can cooperate to accelerate the complete establishment of these seven capabilities, ensuring the country's security. (Editor: Hsieh Chia-Chen) 2026/05/08
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(Central News Agency reporter Wen Kuei-Hsiang, Taipei, 8th) Presidential Office spokesperson Kuo Ya-hui stated tonight that after nearly six months of communication, the special defense act has progressed, allowing multiple military procurements, including the HIMARS multiple rocket launcher system, to finally move forward. She hopes that cross-party consensus in the legislature, building on this first step, will continue to complete the integrity of the entire defense system, ensuring no key capabilities are omitted.
The Legislative Yuan today, after a vote, passed the 'Special Act for the Procurement of National Security and Strengthening Asymmetric Combat Capabilities Plan' on its third reading, which concerns military procurements from the U.S. A total budget cap of NT$780 billion was allocated, with NT$300 billion for the first wave of U.S. military procurements and NT$480 billion for the second wave.
Kuo Ya-hui stated tonight that since the special act was sent to the legislature last November, after nearly six months of effort, thanks to the continuous communication between the executive team, including the Ministry of National Defense, and the legislature, the procurement of multiple critical equipment, including the HIMARS multiple rocket launcher system, has finally begun to advance, taking a difficult first step.
However, she said that considering this act covers seven major defense capabilities, which are of holistic, urgent, and inseparable importance, she hopes that cross-party consensus in the legislature, building on this first step, will continue to complete the integrity of the entire defense system, ensuring no key capabilities are omitted.
Kuo Ya-hui pointed out that the special act for strengthening defense resilience and asymmetric combat capabilities covers seven major defense capabilities, which constitute a mutually supporting and interconnected defense system. Proposing it as a special act precisely considers the urgency, importance, and inseparability of these capabilities for Taiwan's defense.
She stated that while the legislative completion of the U.S. military procurement portion of the special act today indeed addresses the urgent need for follow-up procurement of many major military items, several highly necessary and urgent items were not simultaneously passed. These include indigenous and commissioned drone production, establishment of a defense supply chain, command and control and decision-making assistance systems, and indigenous defense commissioning and joint Taiwan-U.S. R&D. These are all critical links for strengthening national defense at this moment and brook no delay.
Kuo Ya-hui said that the importance of these items has not diminished because of the partial passage of the act; their urgency remains. The President hopes that cross-party consensus in the legislature will redouble efforts to complete the entire defense system for the subsequent items in the shortest possible time.
Kuo Ya-hui said that there should be no blue-green political differences in the goal of strengthening self-defense and protecting the country and its citizens. Especially in neighboring countries like South Korea, Japan, and the Philippines, in response to growing threats including from China, important military strengthening plans and budgets have been unanimously passed by both ruling and opposition parties in the shortest time. She hopes that cross-party consensus can cooperate to accelerate the complete establishment of these seven capabilities, ensuring the country's security. (Editor: Hsieh Chia-Chen) 2026/05/08
Choose to stand with facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.
Download the Central News Agency 'First-Hand News' APP to stay updated with the latest news.
The text, images, and audio-visual content on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, or publicly transmitted and utilized without authorization.