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PRESIDENT VOWS TO BUILD UP TAIWAN'S SELF-DEFENSE ABILITIES

ROC Central News Agency

2006-01-17 21:50:37

    Taipei, Jan. 17 (CNA) President Chen Shui-bian called on the Legislative Yuan to support a long-stalled arms deal with the United States during the next legislative session, saying that his administration stands firm on its determination to build up Taiwan's self-defense abilities.

    Chen made the appeal while inspecting the defense situation on the outlying island of Kinmen in the run-up to the Chinese New Year holiday, which will begin on Lunar New Year's Eve Jan. 28.

    The president said he regrets that a government budget plan for the U.S. arms procurement package was "irrationally" blocked by the opposition camp during the legislature's just-concluded session, even though the price of the deal had been adjusted downward.

    Not only did a special budget for the package fail to be put on the legislative agenda for deliberation, but all of the funds listed in a 2006 annual budget were axed by the legislature, Chen pointed out.

    The opposition "pan blue alliance" of the Kuomintang and the People First Party, which holds a slight majority in the legislature, axed all the funds listed in the Ministry of National Defense's 2006 budget plan concerning the procurement of six Patriot III anti-missile batteries, eight diesel-electric submarines and 12 P-3C Orion submarine-hunting aircraft. "Pan blue alliance" legislators object to the arms procurement bill and have prevented full-house deliberation 45 times since 2004. In addition to what the opposition claims is the "exorbitant price" of the weapons, the legislators also object to the procurement being financed by a special budget. The initial price tag of the arms package was NT$610.8 billion, but the MND later reduced it to NT$480 billion after the opposition lawmakers rejected the bill.

    Voicing his hope that legislators from across the political spectrum will agree to put the budget on the agenda during the next legislative session, Chen said he is confident that the nation's armed forces will not only stand firm with the government and people but will also devote themselves to safeguarding the country. "The new year is a good chance for us to forsake the old mindset and create new opportunities for ourselves, " Chen said, adding that the most effective way to cope with the changing situation is to beef up national defense and psychological defense, as well as unity among the people. "Only by galvanizing a national consensus on defense reinforcement and building an overall national defense system can national security be safeguarded forever," Chen said.

    Touching on the development of cross-Taiwan Strait relations, Chen said he will firmly safeguard the rights and interests of the public until China gives up his threat to use force against Taiwan and agrees to resume the long-suspended cross-strait talks under the four principles of "sovereignty, democracy, peace and parity." "The government will tighten up the management of China-bound investment by domestic manufacturers to ensure Taiwan's core economic interests and minimize political risks in cross-strait economic and trade exchanges," Chen said.

    He also thanked the soldiers stationed on the frontline island for dedicating their efforts to safeguarding national security.

    Chen was accompanied on his trip by National Defense Minister Lee Jie, Chief of the General Staff Lee Tien-yu, and General Political Warfare Bureau Director Hu Chen-pu.

(By Luis Huang)

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