Hundreds of people rallied in central Taipei on Saturday (May 23, 2026) in support of government ​plans to increase defence spending, after the Opposition controlled Parliament approved ‌only two-thirds of the $40 billion President Lai Ching-te ​had requested.

Mr. Lai wanted the supplementary defence ⁠budget approved, including money for U.S. arms but also for domestically made equipment such as drones to increase deterrence against China, which ‌views the island as its own territory.

But the Opposition, which has the most ‌seats in Parliament, this month passed its own ‌version ⁠of the spending package, and only for U.S. ⁠arms, saying the government proposals were unclear and could lead to corruption.

The Taipei protest was organised by several human rights ​and pro-independence groups, who waved ‌flags and shouted slogans in support of defence spending.

“True peace requires national defence. Only by strengthening our national defence can we ensure Taiwan’s freedom,” Wang Hsing-huan, ‌chairman of the small Taiwan Statebuilding Party (TSP), which ​has no lawmakers in Parliament, told the crowd.

The government is now trying to ⁠get the rest of the money approved, including for its new “T-Dome” integrated air defence system. “We need to protect ourselves ‌against China’s expansion,” said civil engineer Angela Yen, 34. “China and Taiwan are two different countries.”

Both Taiwan’s main Opposition parties say they support defence spending but will not sign “blank cheques”.

Speaking in southern Taiwan earlier on Saturday (May 23, 2026), Cheng Li-wun, Chairwoman of the largest opposition party ‌the Kuomintang, said nobody wanted to see war break out ​with China.

Taiwan is not without money, but must not spend recklessly, her party quoted her ⁠as saying. Taiwan should invest in peace, not war, and ⁠not send the next generation to serve as soldiers and fight, added Cheng, who last month ‌met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

Taiwan’s government rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, saying only the island’s ​people can decide their future.

Taiwan’s government aims to increase defence spending to 5% of GDP by 2030, President Lai Ching-te said on Friday (August 22, 2025), as the United States pushes Taipei to invest more in its own security.

Taiwan lives under the constant threat of invasion by China, which claims the self-ruled island is part of its territory and has threatened to seize it by force.

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The island has ramped up spending on military equipment and weapons over the past decade, but it remains heavily reliant on the United States to deter a Chinese attack.

Spending was expected to “reach 5% of GDP by 2030, in line with NATO standards,” Mr. Lai said, during a visit to the Navy’s 168th Fleet in northeastern Taiwan, according to a presidential statement.

Mr. Lai’s remarks came a day after his government announced plans to increase the 2026 defence budget to 3.32% of gross domestic product.

It also comes as Taipei seeks to strike an agreement with U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration for a lower tariff on Taiwanese shipments to the United States.

Trump imposed a temporary 20-percent tariff this month on Taiwan’s imports as part of his global trade war. Negotiations are ongoing.

The Lai government’s proposed defence spending for 2026 needs to be approved by the opposition-controlled parliament before it can take effect.

The allocation of NT$949.5 billion (US$31.1 billion) was an increase of 22.9% on this year.

The 2026 defence budget, however, includes NT$135.9 billion in spending on the Coast Guard Administration and military retirement benefits, which were not included last year.