TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Ministry of National Defense officials on Thursday warned that changes to its proposed NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.5 billion) special defense budget would severely delay force buildup plans.

Speaking in a CNEWS interview, Lieutenant General Huang Wen-chi (黃文啓), head of the MND’s strategic planning department, said a defense budget that only includes weapons systems and cuts logistics would become disconnected from the military’s overall acquisition plan.

On Monday, the Taiwan People’s Party caucus proposed its own NT$400 billion defense budget that only included big-ticket items, such as M109A7 self-propelled howitzers, High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, and anti-armor missiles and drones. The budget did not allocate funds for logistics or training and would be distributed in phases.

Huang said every arms procurement item must be budgeted according to an acquisition plan, which covers primary systems, related construction works, logistics and maintenance, comprehensive training, and administrative costs. The MND’s version includes all of these aspects, he said.

He added that under current regulations, if items in a procurement plan exceeding NT$1 billion need to be changed, the entire plan must be withdrawn, re-reviewed, and resubmitted to the Cabinet for approval. Having to redo administrative procedures could seriously affect force-building schedules, he said.

MND Spokesperson Lieutenant General Sun Li-fang (孫立方) said the special defense budget was compiled based on the nation’s threat environment and joint operational capability requirements and cannot be arbitrarily broken apart. If it is unilaterally cut, he said, it would be impossible to generate effective combat power.

Defense planning must account for both “defense and counterstrike,” he added.

The KMT and TPP legislators have blocked a review of the special defense budget bill eight times so far.