By AFP and Focus | 2026-04-02

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- A US senator said it was "very important" for Taiwan to approve a special defense spending bill, as Washington increases pressure on the democratic island to invest more in its own military.

The remarks came March 30 during a two-day visit to Taipei by a bipartisan group of four US senators led by Republican John Curtis and Democrat Jeanne Shaheen, aimed at reinforcing alliances in the Indo-Pacific.

Taiwanese lawmakers are at loggerheads over how much to spend on improving defense capabilities against a potential attack by China, which claims the island is part of its territory and has threatened to forcibly seize it.

Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the two opposition parties, which control parliament, are locked in negotiations after reviewing rival budget proposals last week and failing to reach a consensus.

"Passing of the special defense budget is very important to me and my colleagues back in Washington, DC," Curtis said in Taipei during a visit by the delegation.

"We want to make sure that as we invest in this part of the world, that you are also investing and that we're in this together," he said after the senators met with Lai.

At a press event at Taiwan's Presidential Office, Shaheen said "peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait are essential to the global economy and to our shared prosperity," while Curtis stressed "peace through strength," Taiwan's Central News Agency reported.

Lai's government has proposed 1.25 trillion TWD ($39 billion) in spending over eight years on critical defense purchases, including US arms. In contrast, the opposition Kuomintang party (KMT) wants to allocate 380 billion TWD ($11.9 billion) for US weapons with the option for more acquisitions.

Both the KMT and DPP have shown some willingness to budge from their positions.

As pressure from the United States, Taiwan's main security backer, continues to grow, some KMT lawmakers are pushing for a significantly higher budget than the one proposed by their own party, signaling an internal split over defense.

Meanwhile, senior DPP lawmaker Wang Ting-yu told AFP last week the governing party could potentially work with 900 billion TWD ($28.1 billion) instead of the original 1.25 trillion TWD -- if the opposition did not restrict the budget to US arms.

US support 'strong and enduring'

Shaheen said US support for Taiwan "remains strong and enduring."

As part of the two-day visit, the delegation stopped by the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology in Taoyuan to look at military drones and equipment in development.

Taiwan has spent billions upgrading its defenses. The island maintains its own defense industry but would be massively outgunned in a conflict with China. It remains heavily reliant on US arms sales.

In March, Taiwan's parliament gave the government a green light to sign US agreements for four weapon deals, even though funding for these and other arms still needs approval.

The weapons -- M109A7 self-propelled howitzers, Javelin anti-armor missiles, TOW 2B missiles and High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) -- account for almost $9 billion of the $11.1 billion arms package announced by Washington in December.

On March 30, Deputy Defense Minister Hsu Szu-chien urged the US government to "expedite the notification process" for Taiwan's remaining arms sales requests to help "our efforts to secure funding for the special defense budget."

The US Congress, under the Taiwan Relations Act, mandates the supply of weapons to the self-governing democracy for its defense.

US President Donald Trump said in February he would decide soon on whether to send more weapons to Taiwan.

After Taiwan, the senators visited Japan and South Korea in a bid to strengthen US alliances in the Indo-Pacific region, international media reported.