When it comes to Taiwan, comments from the Trump administration about the island nation increasing its defense budget to up to 10 percent of its annual gross domestic product have been making headlines, but this isn’t the real problem. Taiwan relies almost exclusively on the United States for arms sales due to its diplomatic constraints.
Such sales from the United States are mandated by the Taiwan Relations Act, passed by the U.S. Congress in 1979. This reliance renders Taiwan particularly vulnerable to chronic delays and systemic problems in U.S. arms deliveries. Persistent backlogs continue to hamper Taiwan’s defense planning andThe post Taiwan’s Biggest Limitation in Defense Isn’t Spending, It’s Late Deliveries from U.S. Defense Companies appeared first on War on the Rocks.