Taiwan's military spending will rise a modest 3.5% year-on-year to hit a fresh record high in 2024, President Tsai Ing-wen said Monday as she pledged continued efforts to improve defenses amid a growing China threat.
China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has ramped up military and political pressure over the past three years to assert those claims, which Taipei strongly rejects.
The overall defense budget proposed by Tsai, which will need parliamentary approval, is 606.8 billion New Taiwan dollars ($19 billion), amounting to 2.5% of the island's gross domestic product.