On Friday, Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan unanimously approved a plan to allow the government to sign a US$9-billion arms deal with the U.S., easing concerns that further delays would push Taiwan to the back of the production queue. The four arms packages include anti-tank missiles, howitzers, rocket systems, and Javelin missiles.
Taiwanese President William Lai and his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) will be breathing a sigh of relief, with the vote signalling a degree of solidarity and ‘tripartisan’ support for security. The Legislative Yuan, Taiwan’s unicameral legislature, is controlled by the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP).
Last year, Lai pitched an ambitious US$40-billion special defence budget to be spent over eight years. But the KMT and TPP have stalled his proposal, refusing to give Lai a “blank cheque” and instead proposing less costly defence budgets.
In February, 37 American lawmakers sent a letter to Taiwan’s opposition parties, encouraging them to increase defence spending.
The U.S. is Taiwan’s most important security backer, but a new poll of 1,206 Taiwanese by Academia Sinica — a Taiwanese educational institution — found that only 34 per cent of respondents viewed the U.S. as “a credible country,” down from 45 per cent in 2021.
At a think-tank event on Saturday, Lai said that “with Taiwan’s economic growth, we can absolutely afford [the special budget] ... if we look at the U.S. National Security Strategy, the U.S. emphasizes collective defence and burden-sharing." According to Lai, Taiwan’s defence spending will reach 3.32 per cent of GDP this year and five per cent by 2030.
The ongoing debate over Taiwan’s defence spending is unfolding as Beijing resumes large-scale military exercises around the island. Just two days after the vote, and after two weeks of inactivity, Taipei recorded 26 Chinese jets in the Taiwan Strait.
Ottawa, Taipei cheers to 40 years
This week marks 40 years since the opening of the Canadian Trade Office in Taipei, signifying the beginning of strong, non-official relations between Canada and Taiwan. Even in the absence of formal relations, ties have blossomed over four decades across trade, technology, culture, and people-to-people links.
Taiwan is Canada’s sixth-largest trading partner in Asia; in 2024, Taiwanese direct investment in Canada totalled C$7.3 billion. A Canada–Taiwan trade co-operation framework agreement was agreed to last spring (but hasn’t yet been signed).
In 2024, Canada posted a cyber attaché to Taipei; in 2025, the two sides signed an MOU on dark-vessel detection, allowing Taiwan to access satellite data that could help spot “covert or coercive maritime activity by China,” according to The Globe and Mail.
The last time a Canadian minister travelled to Taiwan was in 1998, when industry minister John Manley visited to discuss trade and investment (only after visiting mainland China). Such a trip is highly unlikely now, but Canadian MPs and Senators continue to visit the island
