Taiwan Legislature Defense Budget Cross-Party Gap Narrows Slightly as US Pressure Mounts

Following the combined pressure from AIT Director Raymond Greene (March 29 endorsement of NT$1.25T bill), the US Senate SFRC delegation (March 30 Taipei visit), and KMT Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen's signal of an NT$800B–NT$1T range (March 30), Taiwan's inter-party defense budget gap shows initial signs of narrowing as of March 31. The competing proposals remain far apart — DPP executive: NT$1.25T; KMT caucus: NT$350–380B; TPP: NT$400B; Lu's signal: NT$800B–NT$1T — but Lu's public comment has broken the KMT caucus's formal unity, creating space for negotiation. The Trump administration has reportedly paused new arms sales approvals pending the Trump-Xi summit now scheduled for May 14–15. Taiwan's MND has warned that failure to pass the special budget by April will delay US weapons procurement timelines through end of 2026, including HIMARS (LOA signed Mar 26), M109A7 howitzers, and ALTIUS loitering drones. The Senate delegation's bipartisan message and the continued PLA pressure create a politically elevated moment for the cross-party budget negotiation to resume in April.