Koo 'Cautiously Optimistic' on Arms Sales After Trump Mentions Call with President Lai

(CNA, Taipei, May 21, by Wu Shu-wei) Former U.S. President Donald Trump said yesterday that he would speak with President Lai Ching-te. Regarding whether this would affect U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo stated today that the United States has repeatedly reiterated its policy toward Taiwan is unchanged. Providing Taiwan with defensive capabilities through military sales in accordance with the Taiwan Relations Act to maintain peace in the Taiwan Strait is an established U.S. policy, and he remains "cautiously optimistic" about military procurement. The Foreign and National Defense Committee of the Legislative Yuan continued its review of the Ministry of National Defense's public and classified budget for the fiscal year 115 (2026) today. Koo made the remarks while taking questions from the media before entering the meeting room this morning. When asked if he was worried about the potential Trump-Lai call affecting U.S. arms sales, Koo said the U.S. has repeatedly reaffirmed its unchanged policy. Besides maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait as a core U.S. interest, providing Taiwan with defensive weapons through sales under the "Taiwan Relations Act" is an established U.S. policy. "Under the condition of an unchanged policy towards Taiwan, I think we remain cautiously optimistic about military procurement," Koo said. KMT Legislator Ma Wen-chun has proposed freezing the entire budget for subsequent indigenous submarines. In response, CSBC Corporation, Taiwan stated yesterday that the prototype of the indigenous submarine, the Hai Kun, is expected to be delivered in the second half of this year, and it is confident about the construction of subsequent vessels. Koo stated that the Hai Kun is now undergoing various sea trial items, and the Ministry of National Defense will follow testing procedures to gradually complete the necessary steps for equipment calibration and verification. Koo emphasized that on the premise of safety and quality, and meeting operational needs, the Ministry certainly hopes to utilize the relevant budget once the Hai Kun completes its sea trials. Regarding recent KMT allegations that drone manufacturers have close ties with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Koo said that the drone industry involves hundreds of companies for key components and systems integration, spread across the country. To label these hundreds of companies as "green friends" is something the public would find unacceptable, Koo argued, adding that this will be judged by the public. (Editor: Chang Liang-chih) 1150521