Taiwan president says defence spending boost aims to ‘deter war’

President Lai emphasises peace and freedom, vows not to tolerate aggression in Taiwan Strait. Save Share Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te has said the island “cherishes peace” and will “not give up our freedom” in a National Day speech outside the Presidential Office in Taipei. Lai made the remarks on Saturday before thousands of people, including foreign diplomats. “We are open to exchanges, but will not accept subordination,” he said. “Our aim by increasing investment in national defence is not to provoke; rather, it is to deter war.” Taiwanese fighter jets and two Chinook helicopters carrying giant Taiwan flags flew over the capital ahead of the speech. The holiday marks the 115th anniversary of a 1911 uprising that toppled China’s last imperial dynasty and led to the founding of the Republic of China. Taiwan’s 23 million people live under theconstant threatof an attack by China, which insists the island is part of its territory, has never renounced the use of force to take it, and calls Lai a “separatist”. Beijing has rebuffed his offers of talks. Lai said China continued to “apply pressure through military and grey-zone activities in an attempt to alter the status quo across the Taiwan Strait”. Grey-zone tactics are actions that stop short of open war. “Peace cannot rely solely on wishes, and tolerance cannot become a pretext for aggressors to encroach ever further,” he added. Lai’s government has set aside a record 1.1 trillion New Taiwan dollars ($34.5bn) for defence in 2027, more than 3 percent of gross domestic product. China held war games around the island shortly after Lai’s first National Day speech in 2024, but not last year. Its last drills near Taiwan were in late December, after news of an $11bn arms deal with Washington, the largest ever US weapons package for the island. Lai said he welcomed talks between the United States and China, but insisted “there must be respect for the right of the people of Taiwan to exist”. He urged democracies in the Indo-Pacific to join forces to preserve peace and stability in the region. The US switched official diplomatic relations from Taipei to Beijing nearly 50 years ago but remains Taiwan’s most important security backer. Officials in Washington and Taipei have repeatedly said US policy on Taiwan has not changed under President Donald Trump....