Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense has released details of the weapons systems proposed for acquisition under its planned special defense budget totaling 1.25 trillion New Taiwan dollars ($40 billion).
First announced by the Taiwanese president in November 2025, the multi-year defense package—spanning 2026 to 2033—is intended to strengthen Taiwan’s military readiness and domestic defense industrial base amid growing concerns over a potential Chinese invasion.
The procurement list includes precision artillery, long-range strike systems, uncrewed and counter-drone platforms, air defense and anti-armor weapons, AI-enabled capabilities, sustainment and wartime production infrastructure, as well as systems developed in partnership with the United States.
The disclosure followed a closed-door briefing by the defense minister to the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee. Officials described the move as necessary to advance defense modernization and readiness after opposition parties—the Kuomintang and the Taiwan People’s Party—repeatedly blocked the bill, citing insufficient transparency over its contents.
The ministry identified seven capability areas covered by the special budget, some of which were previously approved under a $11-billion US foreign military sales package authorized in December 2025. Of the total allocation, approximately 300 billion NTD ($9.4 billion) is earmarked for domestically developed systems, with the remainder allocated largely to overseas procurement, including US-origin equipment.
Precision artillery forms the largest segment, featuring 60 M109A7 self-propelled howitzers, 4,080 precision-guided munitions, 60 ammunition resupply vehicles, 13 recovery vehicles, and associated shells and support equipment.
This is followed by long-range precision strike capabilities, including 82 HIMARS launchers, 1,203 rocket pods, and 420 tactical missiles.
The third capability area focuses on uncrewed systems, comprising 1,554 Altius-700M loitering munitions, 478 Altius-600ISR drones, and approximately 200,000 UAVs for coastal surveillance, reconnaissance, and strike missions, alongside more than 1,000 uncrewed surface vessels and counter-drone systems.
Anti-armor and missile systems form the fourth category, including 70 Javelin launchers with 1,050 missiles, 24 TOW-2B systems with 1,545 missiles, and related munitions.
The fifth area emphasizes AI-enabled military applications such as decision-support tools, tactical networking solutions, and systems designed to accelerate intelligence sharing across units.
A sixth category addresses combat sustainment and wartime production capacity, covering expanded domestic manufacturing of ammunition, explosives, propellants, small-arms components, armored vehicles, protective equipment, night-vision devices, and mobile battlefield-denial systems.
The final category includes weapons and equipment co-developed with the United States, aimed at accelerating access to emerging technologies and strengthening Taiwan’s asymmetric warfare capabilities. Additional funding is also allocated for urgent munitions purchases—including 120mm and 105mm tank rounds and 30mm autocannon ammunition—to bolster stockpiles and training readiness ahead of expanded local production.
