Why Does Taiwan Spend So Little on Its Military? - VisualPolitik EN

Taiwan is increasingly facing threats from China. Despite this, its armed forces are far from being prepared to repel an invasion. In recent decades, they have not been a priority. Why? We explain it in this video.

#Taiwan #China #Military

[danielslubski]

i''m an Israeli, and pro American...BUT don't leave your security in the hands of others.

The arguments of the video (not that there are many) are weak and repeated. The whole video could be 5 minutes. The most important graph shows until 2020 and misleading. Take this as constructive criticism please.

[mukkaar]

Defense is lot cheaper. And ultimately Taiwan is really hyper specific on threat it faces. And there's also giant moat called sea, which actually limits invasion to only few times year due to weather. On other hand, eastern Europe has a lot harder task, Russian can pretty easily just roll down flatland to their territory. At least in comparison, it's obviously not easy as we have seen.

[uriahthehittite]

They, like the Israelis and South Koreans, should have developed their own defense industry. They have the chips to produce high tech weapons and could have been exporters of arms.

[hikkomorisg]

Taiwan cannot solely depend on its own defenses but must also rely on American support. Taiwan's security over the past seventy years has been heavily dependent on the United States. But the reliability of the United States is less about American commitments and more about the Taiwan's own determination.

The Afghans, for instance, questioned American reliability, but without strong local leadership and resistance, American support alone cannot ensure stability.

Ukraine provides a contrasting example. Its steadfast leadership and national resolve have made it a reliable ally of the United States. Similarly, Israel's unwavering commitment to its own defense has solidified its relationship with America. Therefore, America's reliability is contingent on the resolve and leadership of its allies.

For Taiwan, this means that the commitment to defense and national integrity must come from within. If Taiwan's leaders and citizens lack this resolve, no amount of support from the United States will suffice.

[grimmlinn]

South Korea has a land border with North Korea. Taiwan is separated by an ocean. Of course the South Koreans will spend more on defense because it is more vulnerable.

[joelsullivan]

Mainland Taiwan needs to chill out on island Taiwan.

[ThebigJJ]

As a taiwanese, I think a big part of why military spending proportion-wise is so low is because well 1) Taiwan's GPA is growing rapidly and the government just haven't raise the spending as fast as it is growing. 2) The expectation that the US will help when it actually get invaded. 3) If China do attack and the US did not help, Taiwan woulda fall anyway whether it arm itself or not thus it woulda been better to spend that money to help people to live a better live. 4) Finally, While people said they want the government to spend more on military, people even more so want the government to spend money on them thus those that spend money on the constituency get elected.

[rubylaser]

KMT leans toward China. KMT was the nationalist coming to Taiwan after being defeated in the mainland by the communist. The party prefers eventual unification with China even though the CCP was its enemy. KMT is a minor party now in Taiwan, but can still often work againt the governing party DPP on military buget, defense acquisition, military draft policy, etc. It is a problem of Taiwanese defense and foreign polocies, unfortunately.

[macmcelveen]

West Taiwan.. man they hate when you say that.

[ac]

They do commit their fair share if you consider the amount of labor lost in the economy due to mandatory conscription.

That’s hundreds of thousands of young men every year spending a year of their lives making subpar wages, not being used to their full economic potential, and decreasing the birth rate in a country with rapidly aging demographics. That’s worth at least dozens to a hundred billion dollars of implicit cost already

[hikkomorisg]

Taiwan's semiconductor industry is deeply integrated into global tech supply chains, which creates a natural deterrent against China's invasion. Any conflict that disrupts Taiwan's semiconductor production would harm economies worldwide, which in turn would lead to international backlash and economic sanctions against China. This is known as their "Silicon Shield" strategy. Because Taiwan is so vital to the tech industry, many countries, including the U.S., Japan, and several European nations, have a vested interest in Taiwan's security. These countries will continue to provide security assurances to Taiwan, acting as a deterrent to China's invasion. They want to maintain a stable supply chain and avoid any disruptions that could affect their economies. Taiwan's semiconductors aren't just economically important; they're also critical for cost-effective military technology. Taiwan’s ability to produce high-tech components enhances its military capabilities cost-effectively, making it less reliant on other countries.

[americanoutside]

😂The failsafe of the people that make the computer chip, is having a button when pushed thats makes your toaster strangle you! And just like that, you're toast!😅😅😅

[hikkomorisg]

Three mistaken beliefs that harm Taiwan's national security: doubting the United States (疑美論), viewing Taiwan as just a pawn in big power games (炮灰論), and misunderstanding Taiwanese independence (台獨論). Each of these ideas creates unnecessary fear, confusion, and weakens Taiwan's position.

1. Doubting the United States (疑美論)

This mistaken belief involves a widespread distrust of the United States as a reliable ally and defender of Taiwan. Some people argue that the U.S. might not defend Taiwan if China attacks, pointing to times when U.S. policies seemed inconsistent. This doubt weakens Taiwanese confidence in U.S. security promises. In fact, there is a strong historical and ongoing U.S. support for Taiwan. The Taiwan Relations Act, continuous arms sales, and joint military exercises show the U.S.'s deep commitment. Doubting the U.S. often shows a lack of confidence within Taiwan itself. U.S. support is stronger when Taiwan shows its own determination to defend itself, similar to how countries like Ukraine and Israel maintain strong U.S. support by being resilient and committed to their own defense.

2. Viewing Taiwan as a Pawn (炮灰論)

This mistaken belief sees Taiwan as just a piece in the larger strategic game between the U.S. and China, implying that Taiwan's fate depends on the interests of these bigger powers. This perspective can make people in Taiwan feel powerless and discourage proactive defense efforts. In fact, Taiwan is not just a pawn but an important partner with its own strategic importance. The extensive political, economic, and military cooperation between Taiwan and the U.S. shows that Taiwan's security and prosperity are crucial to both regional and global stability.

3. Misunderstanding Taiwanese Independence (台獨論)

The third mistaken belief involves the talk about Taiwanese independence. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) often uses the idea of "Taiwanese independence" to justify aggressive actions against Taiwan. They claim any move by Taiwan towards more international recognition is a push for independence, giving them a reason for military or diplomatic actions. This is a deliberate misrepresentation. Taiwan's political status has been separate from China since 1949, and its democratic development since the 1990s strengthens its distinct identity. The CCP's portrayal of Taiwanese independence is often a tactic to delegitimize Taiwan's self-governance and international participation.

[antonypoyu]

Nice episode. Taiwan needs more indigenous arm production to meet our challenges, which is something we are already working on. Since we are talking about hypotheticals, I would love to watch an episode analyzing what happens to United States if Taiwan is taken over by China, whether by force or through peaceful means. In my opinion, that scenario would be the start of a cascade for US to lose Pacific. Philippines could be the next, followed by Korea and Japan.

[bowlampar]

Taiwan is not China, whenever it wants to increase national defense spending, its president needs to have approval from legislators, unlike China, he has limited presidential authority in this matter.

[tchunzulltsai]

We are talking about China being the enemy, and that is the opponent the least you want to compete with the NUMBERS game. Even if Taiwan spend 20% of its GDP on military, it’s still very unlikely to win against China 1 on 1. So it’s very reasonable for Taiwan to dedicate its resources towards guaranteeing international support, either in the form of diplomatic or economic means. By establishing a solid position rooted in the global economy and maintaining friendly relationships with other democratic countries, it assures that other countries better help prevent the war and maintain power balance across the Taiwan Strait (in current situation, it means side with Taiwan.)
The military capabilities of Taiwan need to only support itself to give the world enough reaction time to apply military actions or sanctions, then try to turn the tide with outside forces. To be honest, there are not many countries that can single-handedly fight China 1 on 1 militarily simply due to its size.

[MarchHare]

The key to Taiwan's defense depends on their national identity and the commitment of the people and the army to resist China at all costs. Ukraine is proving this today, though admittedly with the latest Western weapon systems to support them, but Vietnam managed to defeat the U.S. military with a fraction of the hardware and trained personnel arrayed against it. If the Taiwanese people fight with that level of intensity and sacrifice, they could beat China in a grueling war of attrition, if not then is doesn't matter how much hardware they purchase or build.

[pg.travels]

Their military only needs to be strong enough to make the damage not worth it for the PRC to try...
You wouldn't know it from western media but the two usually have ok relations too....

[hikkomorisg]

Lower military spending simply means employing "asymmetric warfare" - using cheaper but smarter tactics to fight against China. For example, Taiwan could use underwater drones and unmanned boats armed with explosives to scare off Chinese attacks. These drones can find and attack Chinese submarines and ships without risking the lives of Taiwanese soldiers. These technologies are cheap, deadly, and they work well. That means Taiwan can build a strong defense without spending too much money.