Taipei – Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te vowed Friday to speed up construction of a multi-layered air defence system as part of efforts to counter “enemy threats”.
Lai’s government has been under US pressure to improve its ability to defend itself against a potential attack by China, which claims the island is part of its territory.
“We will accelerate our building of the T-Dome, establish a rigorous air defence system in Taiwan with multi-layered defence, high-level detection, and effective interception,” Lai said during Taiwan’s National Day celebrations.
Lai said Taiwan was determined to “maintain peace through strength” and called on China to “renounce the use of force or coercion to change the status quo across the Taiwan Strait”.
Lai’s speech followed a bruising year for the president, a staunch defender of Taiwan’s sovereignty who is loathed by Beijing.
A failed effort this year to unseat dozens of opposition lawmakers left the government weakened, while US tariffs on Taiwanese shipments eroded confidence in the key relationship.
“International countries watching should be very emboldened by Taiwan’s commitment to defense,” @wentisung says of President Lai Ching-te’s speech marking Taiwan’s National Day. pic.twitter.com/gQFPHOMPXC
— TaiwanPlus News (@taiwanplusnews) October 10, 2025
Lai reiterated on Friday plans to ramp up defence spending to more than three percent of gross domestic product next year and five percent by 2030.
“We will advance the integration of high-tech and AI technologies to build a smart defence combat system, maximising effective deterrence for our asymmetric strategy,” Lai said.
Taiwan will also boost its own defence industry and strengthen domestic supply chains to build a “robust line of defence”, he said.
While Taiwan has increased spending on its military in recent years, it would be massively outgunned in a conflict with China and remains heavily reliant on its biggest arms supplier Washington to deter Beijing from attacking.
‘Lessons learned’
Increasing investment in Taiwan’s air defence “reflects an appreciation for the lessons being learned in Ukraine,” said Drew Thompson, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University.
“Taiwan already has a robust air defense network comprising legacy and new systems… so they are integrating them into a resilient network able to defend against threats ranging from small UAVs to missiles to aircraft,” Thompson said.
Friday’s celebrations mark the 114th anniversary of the toppling of China’s Qing dynasty and the subsequent founding of the Republic of China.
The current dispute between China and Taiwan dates to a civil war between the nationalist forces of Chiang Kai-shek, who retreated to the island, and Mao Zedong’s communist fighters.
President Lai highlights defense in National Day address pic.twitter.com/xWCbJfVLw7
— Focus Taiwan (CNA English News) (@Focus_Taiwan) October 10, 2025
Beijing launched military drills around Taiwan after Lai’s National Day speech last year, sending planes and ships to encircle the island.
A US administration official speaking on condition of anonymity said China should not use Lai’s remarks as a “pretext for destabilising actions”.
China would not need to respond “aggressively” this time given Lai was “suffering right now”, said Jonathan Sullivan, a China and Taiwan expert at the University of Nottingham.
Trump is expected to meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in the coming weeks as the rival superpowers thrash out a trade deal that could impact Taiwan.
“I don’t think China will react with a military drill,” said James Yifan Chen, a political expert, noting Beijing will want to maintain “good atmosphere” ahead of the meeting.
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Source: AFP
